KARACHI, Nov 7: An anti-terrorism court on Friday recorded the statement of a complainant in a kidnapping for ransom and murder case.

Syed Mohsin Raza alias Javed, Syed Adnan Raza, Nazia and, the wife of Mohsin, Shazia, were charged with kidnapping a customs clearing agent, Suhrab Khan, for ransom and later killing him.

Abdul Ghaffar Khan, the complainant and brother of the deceased, in his statement told the court that Mohammad Ali, a friend of Suhrab, had informed him about the incident and told him that the victim had called him on the night of June 21 and asked him to arrange Rs80,000 and deliver the sum to Karimabad Bridge.

The complainant said that when Ali reached the bridge a man approached him and asked him to hand over the money and said that Shurab was in their custody and that they would release him after getting the ransom.

The deceased’s friend handed over the money to one of suspected kidnappers, as he had shown the cellphone of the victim as evidence of his being kidnapped, he added.

The complainant further stated that on June 22, the SHO of the Gulbahar police station informed him that the police had found the body and vehicle of his brother. The complainant said he identified the body and gave his statement to the investigation officer on June 23.

The judge, Hasan Ali Bukhari of the ATC-I, adjourned the hearing till Nov 11.

The court will record testimonies of two judicial magistrates, Abdul Sattar and Sarah Junejo, on the next date of hearing as they had conducted the identification parade and recorded confessional statements of the suspects, respectively.

According to the prosecution, Suhrab was kidnapped on June 21 in the limits of Gulbahar police station and the kidnappers demanded Rs80,000 for his release.

However, his body was found in his car (ANY-650) parked in the Gulbahar area.

On July 22, the Anti-Violent Crime Cell (AVCC) acting on a tip-off raided a place in the Super Market area and arrested the suspects.

The investigation officer of the case maintained in the charge-sheet that the accused Nazia worked in a showroom in North Karachi and developed contacts with the victim over telephone.

Later, she introduced him to her friend, Shazia. The women got him to come to a house at Talib Colony in Liaqatabad where the accused overpowered him and demanded ransom for his release, according to the charge-sheet.

The victim arranged the money through his friend, who handed it over to the accused, Mohsin Raza, on the bridge.

However, the accused allegedly shot dead Suhrab and put his body in the boot of his car, which was then left in Firdous Colony near Suleman Heights, Gulbahar, the charge-sheet read.

The police registered a case under Sections 365-A and 302/34 of the Pakistan Penal Code at Gulbahar police station on the complaint of the deceased’s brother.