KARACHI: An additional district and sessions court on Thursday handed down a death sentence to the main accused, Atif Zaman, in connection with the 2019 murder of journalist Mureed Abbas and his friend Khizer Hayat.
The court found Atif Zaman guilty of involvement in the killings that took place in Karachi’s Khayaban-e-Bukhari area on July 9, 2019. Both Atif and his brother, Adil Zaman, were initially detained and charged in relation to the case.
In its verdict, the court ordered Atif Zaman to pay Rs500,000 as compensation to each of the victims’ heirs. The court also issued permanent arrest warrants for Adil Zaman, who has already been declared a proclaimed offender by the trial court.
Additionally, Atif Zaman received a seven-year prison sentence and a fine of Rs50,000 for illegal possession of weapons in a separate case. The case was transferred from an anti-terrorism court to a sessions court in October 2019, as the former had determined the offense was outside its jurisdiction.
