FBI agent, two others record statements: Pearl case
FBI agent, two others record statements: Pearl case
HYDERABAD- A prosecution witness, Amir Afzal Qureshi, receptionist of the Akbar International Hotel, here on Saturday identified Ahmed Omar Saeed Shaikh before the Anti-Terrorism Court as the man who had stayed in his hotel by the name of Muzaffar Farooque.
Recording his testimony in US journalist Daniel Pearl’s kidnapping-cum-murder case, he, however, said he had come to know through Inspector Rao Mohammad Aslam that Muzaffar Farooque was Omer Shaikh and the foreigner who met Farooque was Daniel Pearl.
Anti-Terrorism Court Judge Syed Ali Ashraf Shah recorded the statements of three prosecution witnesses, including special agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Ronald Joseph, the hotel receptionist and judicial magistrate of Karachi South, Erum Jahangir.
The hotel receptionist was cross-examined. However, the FBI agent and the magistrate were not put through this exercise on the request of defence counsels, Abdul Waheed Katpar and Rai Basheer Ahmed.
The four accused – Ahmed Omer Saeed Shaikh, Adil Shaikh, Salman Saqib and Fahad Naseem – were present in the court. Three other foreigners, including a woman, were also in attendance.
The defence counsels would cross-examine the judicial magistrate, Erum Jahangir, on Monday and the FBI agent on Tuesday as the defence wanted to go through the statement and attachments, given by the FBI agent during his examination-in-chief.
The FBI people were brought to the court amidst strict security, supervised by Hyderabad DPO Moazam Jah Ansari. He then accompanied them back to their place of stay in Hyderabad from the court.
The FBI agent has been bound by the court to be present on Monday – the next date of hearing. The FBI witness told the court he had assisted the investigators in the case. He said he had conducted forensic examination on Dell Laptop.
The attachments, produced by the FBI agent, were in fact the working reports that culminated in the formation of the actual report, showing that E-mails were sent from the laptop in question which was the case property.
The judicial magistrate, Erum Jehangir, told the court she had recorded the statements of accused Salman Saqib and Fahad Naseem under section 164 Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) and added that two witnesses, Nasir Abbasi, a taxi driver, and Asif Mahfooz Farooqui, a journalist of Islamabad, had identified Omar Shaikh as the accused.
Farooqui (Omar Shaikh) had assisted Daniel Pearl in connection with his investigation on some stories.
She said she had also obtained the specimen of writing of the accused and added that Omer Shaikh had given his specimen in English whereas Adil Shaikh wrote in Urdu. She also said the investigating officer had shown her the letter of the district and sessions judge for recording confessional statement and that she had no copy of it now.
Rai Basheer, counsel for Salman Saqib, Adil Shaikh and Fahad Naseem told journalists after the proceedings were over that when the magistrate was recording her statement, Salman Saqib interrupted her and said that he gave his statement under section 164 out of compulsion as he was told by the investigators that his mother and sister would be stripped if he did not sign the statement.
The counsel added that Adil Shaikh had also informed Anti Terrorist Court (ATC) Judge Syed Ali Ashraf Shah that he was threatened by Superintendent Police (SP) Zubair, Deputy Superintendent Police (DSP) Farooque and Inspector Hameedullah Memon to sign the statement failing which the consequences would be disastrous.
The third witness, Amir Afzal Qureshi, deposed before the court that Inspector Rao Mohammad Aslam had come to his hotel at Rawalpindi and demanded the record about Jan 11 regarding room no 411.
According to the record, Muzaffar Farooque had stayed in the room for one night and on the next date he departed from the hotel.
The witness said that a foreigner had also visited Muzaffar Farooque and added that the inspector told him that Farooque was actually Omer Shaikh and also disclosed that the foreigner was Daniel Pearl.
On this evidence, defence counsel Rai Basheer Ahmed raised objection and said that it was hearsay evidence and could not be placed on the record. He said he did not bring the ledger as he was not asked to bring it adding that he was examined by police and he had also read his statement. He said it was incorrect to suggest that he had not mentioned in his police statement that Daniel Pearl had met with Omer Shaikh in the hotel and it was wrong that he was deposing at the insistence of the police.
In his cross-examination by Rai Basheer Ahmed, he was confronted with his earlier statement, given to the police, adding that he had mentioned the name as Muzaffar Farooque and not Farooqui and he was not having beard at that time. He denied that he had mentioned in his police statement that room no 417 was booked for Muzaffar Farooqui as his hotel did not have such a room.
He said he had stated in his police statement that the foreigner had met Muzaffar Farooqui but it was not recorded in the statement under section 161 CrPC, adding that he did not disclose the name of the foreigner.
Rai Basheer claimed that the FBI agent had recorded his statement under a fictitious name as he did not produce his identity card and just waved it to the court, saying that US laws permit him not to disclose his identification.
The court directed the superintendent of jail to get Salman Saqib medically examined as he was passing blood in urine.
Source: Dawn
Date:5/12/2002
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