During a breakthrough within the investigation into Wednesday’s blast case, enforcement agencies (LEAs) arrested a suspect said to be a far-off national from the Lahore airport.
Identified as Peter Paul David, the suspect was offloaded from a Karachi-bound flight and shifted to an undisclosed location for interrogation. he’s said to be the owner of the car utilized in the blast on Wednesday near the residence of Jamaatud Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed that killed three people and injured 24 others.
The LEAs were also on the lookout for an additional suspect who is claimed to possess driven the explosives-laden car to the targeted location while dodging law enforcers.
Details about the identity and whereabouts of the arrested suspect are being withheld. David’s travel history showed that he had been shuttling between Karachi, Lahore, and Dubai frequently, while he couldn’t satisfy the investigators about the aim of those visits and his activities.
Since being stolen in 2010 from Gujranwala, the car utilized in the blast had been sold further multiple times and David was its last owner, consistent with initial investigations.
The blast near the residence of the JuD chief has also sparked off debates on the intelligence failure of the Counter-Terrorism Department. CTD chief Wasim Sial also faced criticism during a high-profile meeting on Thursday when it transpired that the terrorists prepared the explosives-laden car in Lahore and transported it near the high-value target’s residence in Johar Town.
The CTD housed an intelligence wing to detect terrorist networks and counter and pre-empt their activities.
An official said intelligence agencies traced the situation of the owner of the car through its registration record obtained from the excise department, then arrested David from the Lahore airport.
Quoting initial investigations, the official said the car entered Lahore from Babu Sabu interchange a couple of hours before the blast where police personnel cleared the vehicle and therefore the driver after checking.
He added that there have been conflicting reports about whether it had been carrying explosives at the time or not. However, there was a robust possibility that it had been fitted with explosives inside Lahore then driven to Johar Town.
CCTV footage showed a masked suspect parking the car at the corner of a street near the residence of the JuD chief around 10:40 am on Wednesday. He got out of the car then disappeared, the official said, adding that the blast occurred around 11:10 am. Reportedly, the suspect had administered the blast with a timed device.
Footage later showed that the driving force was picked up from a petroleum pump nearby by an accomplice during a car and that they drove off, the official said.
He added that in interrogation, David denied his involvement within the blast. He told the investigators that in his last visit to Dubai, a lover of his said someone he (the friend) knew in Gujranwala needed his (David’s) car for a few days. When he returned to Pakistan, he handed over the car to a masked man in Gujranwala, David said, adding that he thought the person was wearing the mask due to Covid.
Our Staff Reporter for Islamabad Adds: Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed claimed that Punjab police were on the brink of arresting the culprits liable for Wednesday’s blast in Lahore.
In a video statement posted on Twitter on Thursday, the minister claimed that officials had achieved “great success” during the investigation. “Punjab police will soon arrest the culprits and deliver excellent news to the people,” he said.
He remarked Pakistan’s enemies couldn’t tolerate the economic and political stability within the country under the leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan and had started adopting “terrorist routes”.
He said elements that wanted to spread chaos within the country would fail, as Pakistan “will never succumb to any pressure”
