KARACHI (Azaad English): In a shocking development, Armaghan, the primary suspect in the killing of Mustafa Amir has reportedly confessed to brutally torturing and killing the victim during interrogation.
Armaghan revealed that he, along with accomplices, assaulted Mustafa using a folding rod. He also confessed to personally driving Mustafa’s car to a different location, after which he set it on fire. In yet another development to an already grim event, Mustafa Amir was alive when his car was set on fire by Armaghan.
Timeline of Mustafa Amir’s case:
Mustafa Amir, a 23-year-old young boy who was a BBA student, went missing in Karachi’s Defence Housing Authority (DHA) on January 6. Two weeks later, his family received a ransom call, and the case was taken over by Anti-Violence Crime Cell (AVCC).
However, it was later found that the ransom call was a ploy by the prime suspect to distract the investigation while the reality was much grim.
Police investigations revealed that Mustafa had an argument over a girl with his friend, Armaghan, on New Year’s Eve. The girl named Marsha Shahid allegedly left Pakistan on January 12 while the Pakistani authorities are in contact with Interpol to bring her back.
According to police, the suspect Armaghan, along with an accomplice Shiraz, called Mustafa to visit his residence, where he later tortured and killed him.
On January 11, a badly burnt and dismembered body was discovered in a burnt vehicle near the Hub checkpost in Balochistan. According to Hub police, they had received information about a burning car on January 11. Upon arrival, the cops found a charred body inside the burning vehicle.
The body was then transferred to Civil Hospital Hub for post-mortem. Faisal Edhi, chairman of Edhi Foundation, revealed that the Balochistan police handed over the body to their organisation on January 12.
Upon investigation, the officials from the Anti-Violent Crime Cell (AVCC) visited Armaghan’s residence in DHA Karachi on February 8, where they engaged in a shootout. Armaghan shot at police officials, wounding two while resisting his arrest. Media reported that the suspect was allegedly buying time while deleting the data on numerous laptops.
After an almost four-hour standoff, the cops managed to arrest the young suspect, and multiple FIRs were registered against him.
Police also arrested the co-accused, Shiraz, on February 14, near Korangi Road, for his alleged involvement in the murder case. Shiraz confessed his involvement in the killing of Mustafa Amir, revealing that he and Armaghan beat Mustafa and took his body in his car to Balochistan. Shiraz also disclosed that Armaghan tortured Mustafa Amir using iron rods for three hours: “After rendering Mustafa Amir unconscious, Armaghan allegedly taped his mouth shut.”
Meanwhile, the police discovered DNA samples from blood stains in Armaghan’s residence which were later confirmed to be a match with Mustafa’s mother.
Earlier this month, the Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) rejected the police’s request for Armaghan’s physical remand and instead sent him on judicial remand. Sindh Acting Prosecutor-General Muntazir Mehdi, however, filed revision applications in the Sindh High Court challenging ATC’s order.
Investigations have uncovered the suspect Armaghan’s previous serious criminal record, as six cases were registered against him between 2019 and 2024 by the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) and the Police. He has previously faced charges of terrorism, attempted murder, drug trafficking, and intimidation.
After Armaghan’s bungalow was raided, it was also revealed that he operated an illegal software house and call centre from his residence, allegedly defrauding foreign nationals of millions of dollars.
Sindh Inspector General of Police (IGP) Ghulam Nabi Memon confirmed that three police officers had been suspended and demoted over “unprofessional conduct” regarding Mustafa Amir’s case.
The top official’s statement came after intense criticism from the public about the police’s alleged incompetence in investigating Amir’s disappearance. However, he defended the senior police officials’ work, claiming that the officials faced many obstacles during the investigation. According to IGP, Amir did not use a local SIM card, which made him untraceable to the police.
Further investigation has revealed a criminal record of the victim, Mustafa Amir, with a drug trafficking case registered against him two days before his disappearance on January 4, 2025.
ATC, on February 18, granted police a 4-day physical remand of Armaghan in the murder case after SHC set aside ATC’s earlier verdict.
