A local court on Monday granted four days' physical remand of a juvenile suspect arrested in connection with a deadly traffic crash in Barakahu that claimed four lives and left four others injured, while police continued efforts to trace three alleged companions of the accused and recover a vehicle believed to be linked to the case.
The juvenile, identified as Wasiq Kiyani, was produced before Judicial Magistrate Hafeez Ahmed after investigators sought 14 days' physical custody to further probe the accident that occurred on Saturday night. According to police, the suspect was taken into custody on Sunday and presented before the court a day later for remand proceedings.
During the hearing, Investigating Officer (IO) Khalid Rokri informed the court that four people had died and four others had sustained injuries in the crash. He argued that further custodial interrogation was necessary as investigators were still searching for three individuals who were allegedly travelling with the accused at the time of the incident. He further stated that a Toyota Aqua believed to be connected to the case had yet to be recovered.
The defence opposed the request for an extended remand, contending that the accused was approximately 16 years old, a matriculation student and a resident of Phulgran. Defence counsel maintained that his client had not been driving the vehicle and was merely a passenger at the time of the incident. He urged the court to discharge the juvenile from the case.
Responding to the defence arguments, the investigating officer told the court that the accused had admitted during the investigation to driving the vehicle involved in the crash. The defence also alleged that police had detained other individuals in connection with the investigation. However, the investigating officer denied the claim and informed the court that no other person had been arrested or was currently in police custody.
According to FIR No. 346/26, registered at Barakahu Police Station on the complaint of Sub-Inspector Muhammad Sharif, the accident occurred late on the night of May 30. The FIR states that a black Land Cruiser travelling from the Murree side was being driven at excessive speed and in a rash and negligent manner when it struck multiple people in the Barakahu area, resulting in fatalities, injuries and property damage. Police subsequently registered a case under Sections 322, 279 and 427 of the Pakistan Penal Code and launched a formal investigation.
After hearing arguments from both sides, Judicial Magistrate Hafeez Ahmed observed that although the accused appeared to be a juvenile offender, the allegations involved a grave incident that had caused considerable public concern. In a written order, the magistrate noted that the alleged occurrence was serious in nature and could fall within the category of heinous offences as defined under Section 2(g) of the Juvenile Justice System Act, 2018. The court further observed that the allegations appeared prima facie well-founded at this stage of the investigation and that important recoveries and discoveries were still pending.
Partially accepting the police request, the magistrate granted four days' physical remand instead of the 14 days sought by investigators and directed police to produce the accused before the court again on June 5. Meanwhile, police said efforts were continuing to trace the three alleged companions of the accused and recover the vehicle believed to have played a key role in the investigation.
