ISLAMABAD — Pakistani police on Tuesday opened a felony investigation right into a failed assassination try on former Prime Minister Imran Khan and stated only one shooter was concerned.
Khan, 70, has recommended that there may very well be two individuals who shot at him at an anti-government rally within the japanese metropolis of Wazirabad final Thursday.
The former cricket star, who has been urgent for early elections since being ousted as premier after shedding a Parliament vote in April, is recovering from leg wounds at his residence within the metropolis of Lahore.
Police recognized the suspect as Mohammad Naveed, a person in his 30s.
A replica of the police report, which was seen by Reuters, stated a person within the crowd close to Khan had taken out a pistol and began capturing, wounding Khan and 10 different individuals, one among whom later died.
Police stated the suspected shooter was arrested after Khan supporter Ibtesam Hasan overpowered him and threw off his goal.
Regional police chief Akhtar Abbas informed Reuters {that a} felony investigation had been launched after the registration of a proper case.
Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah stated on Tuesday the suspect was self-motivated.
“The issues we obtained from his cellular phone confirmed that he was totally motivated, totally dedicated,” he informed a information convention.
Reuters journalists final Friday visited the district of Wazirabad the place the suspect lived in a dingy home together with his widowed mom, spouse and two sons — the youngest simply 2 weeks outdated.
Police confirmed to Reuters on Tuesday this was the identical man because the suspect Mohammad Naveed named within the case.
Neighbors stated he had this yr returned from Saudi Arabia, the place he had labored as a plumber for a number of years.
They described him as a quiet particular person and stated his reference to the assault got here as a shock, though he had proven some indicators of religiosity since his return to Pakistan.
“I knew him since his childhood, he had no dangerous habits, his act simply shocked us,” stated neighbor Mohammad Saddiq, including the person currently had preached to him about saying his prayers.
He attended a neighborhood mosque and had not too long ago objected to a music occasion at a close-by college, asking to make sure the music was not performed at prayer time.
Khan stated on Twitter on Tuesday that the police case was “farcical.”
He has accused Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah and intelligence official Major-General Faisal Nasser of planning to assassinate him. The authorities and army have denied this.
Khan launched what is called a long-march protest rally from Lahore to the capital on Oct. 28, which his celebration stated will resume on Thursday on the identical place the place he was attacked.
Khan supporters blocked roads close to the capital, Islamabad, on Tuesday, disrupting site visitors and forcing colleges to shut.
