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KARACHI: An anti-terrorism court in Karachi indicted Lyari gang war leader Uzair Baloch for kidnapping and murder of trader Abdul Samad on Tuesday.
While reading out the charge sheet today, the court said Baloch has been accused of kidnapping a trader named Abdul Samad and asking his family for Rs1 million for ransom. The trader was murdered after Baloch had been paid Rs70,000.
When asked if he was involved in the murder and kidnapping, the accused denied the allegations and pleaded not guilty.
The court then issued notices to the investigating officer and the witnesses in the case and directed the witnesses to record their statement at the next hearing.
Baloch was arrested in 2016 by Rangers having confessed to 197 murders. The gangster had 65 cases registered in different police stations of the city. He had also confessed to embezzling finds.
A Joint Investigation Team (JIT) report released on Monday in its findings said Baloch, whose father was kidnapped and killed by father of Arshad Pappu joined Rehman Dacoit gang to avenge the murder of his father.
“After killing of Rehman Dacoit in 2008 Baloch took over his gang and launched Peoples Amman Committee (PAC) under which garb, he continued his criminal activities and gang war in Lyari against Arshad Pappu and Ghaflar Zikri groups,” the report said.
It added, “Besides it, his gang war activities also continued against MOM target killers/activists in the neighbouring towns of Lyari.”
The report further stated that in April 2012, police launched an operation in Lyari against PAC but suffered heavy men/material losses and failed to enter into mainland Lyari due to stiff armed resistance from the PAC gangsters and remained restricted to Cheel Chowk.
“ln March 2013, Arshad Pappu was brutally killed by Uzair’s gangsters, which made Uzair Baloch the undisputed criminal king of Lyari. However, soon after the murder of Arshad Pappu, the PAC gangsters developed an internal rift, where after its mainstay Noor Muhammad @ Baba Ladla, separated his group which created another strife in Lyari with Uzair Baloch gang having the upper hand,” it added.
