LAHORE: Police investigation has revealed that the kidnap of playwright Khalilur Rehman Qamar was a ‘honey-trap’ scam, carried out by a 12-person gang who demanded a ransom of Rs 10 million.
During the investigation, the police have arrested a key suspect, Hassan Shah from Nankana Sahib, who was believed to be the mastermind behind the kidnap. DIG Imran Kishwar said one of the key players in the crime, Amna Urooj, was used for honey trapping of Khalilur Rehman Qamar. The DIG said she had rented a flat in Bahria Town for a short time to execute the plan.
As soon as Khalilur Rehman reached the flat, the gang carried out their plan. Prime suspect, Amna Urooj deleted all the records including mobile phone calls and messages, she had sent to the playwright and her fellow gang members.
The CIA police took the lead when they recovered the CCTV footage installed around the rented flat, the housing society, and the other areas where the kidnappers took Khalilur Rehman Qamar.
The CIA police used advanced technology to get a significant lead to unearth the crime plot and involvement of other gang members, the DIG said. He further added that police retrieved all the deleted records from the mobile phone of Amna Urooj.
The CIA police first traced the leader, Hassan Shah, by the call detail records of the mobile phone used by Urooj and arrested him during a raid. The CIA claimed that they have found Hassan Shah’s criminal record including a murder case, illegal land occupation, aerial firing, and drug selling. Under interrogation, Hassan disclosed to the police the names of his gang members who were part of the plot to kidnap Khalilur Rehman Qamar.
Imran Kishwar said that Amna Urooj was used by Hassan Shah and Zeshan for honey trapping. She got the personal number of Khalil from his manager, the DIG said, adding that Amna trapped him for a special meeting at her flat.
Talking to media reporters on Monday, the DIG said some of the gang members were very dangerous as some CCTV footage showed them with advanced illegal weapons. The gang had 12 members, including two women.
Responding to a question that why he met the woman late at night, Khalilur Rehman Qamar replied, “I am currently ill, and my doctor has advised me to avoid sunlight for around five years. Even if my doctor hadn’t advised it, we do meetings at night regardless of gender. I have met men late at night many times, so why should this be different?”
