 The brother of a militant suspected of links to the murder of US reporter Daniel Pearl has asked a court to ensure his brotherâs safety.
| "I'm afraid somebody's gonna bump him off, yer honor! He knows too much!" |
A petition calling for the protection of suspect Mohammad Hashim Qadir had been filed with the Sindh High Court. Qadirâs lawyer Rai Bashir Ahmad said two of seven suspects wanted in connection with the kidnapping and murder of the Wall Street Journal reporter had been killed in encounters with security men. âWe fear they might also kill Qadir,â Ahmad told reporters.
| "One o' these days, in the dead of night, they're gonna make him lead them to his arms cache in the old abandoned warehouse! You know what happens then!" |
Pearl, 38, was kidnapped in Karachi in January 2002 while researching a story on Islamist militants. He was later killed. Ahmad said Qadirâs brother, Mohammad Khalid Imran, had expressed fears that Qadir might be killed as police had no evidence to prosecute him in the Pearl case. Investigators say Qadir had admitted taking instructions from Omar Sheikh and another militant, Amjad Hussain Farooqi, who is also believed to have played a prominent role in Pearlâs murder. Police believe Qadir set up a meeting between Pearl and the militants who kidnapped and killed him. A civil court in Karachi on Tuesday allowed police to hold Qadir until August 13 for investigation of a separate murder case, but police said he would also be charged in the Pearl case. |