The killer of journalist Aziz Memon was arrested on Friday after his DNA was found on Memon’s body. According to AIG Ghulam Nabi, the DNA of another person was found from Memon’s body during the post-mortem examination.
Murderers of Aziz Memon have been arrested. No one from PPP local leadership found guilty over this issue, all claims made about their involvement were baseless.#CMMuradZindabad pic.twitter.com/JFC8CwG9Aj
— Abida Qaimkhani PPP (@Abida_KK_PPP) May 29, 2020
The DNA matched with Mujtaba Nazeer Sehtu, who confessed his crime under police custody and revealed the names of his accomplices during the murder. “Three suspects have been arrested while the police are on the lookout for five other,” Nabi said.
During a press conference on Friday, the IG assured that the team will not succumb to any pressure and will make sure that the suspects are punished.
Memon, murdered in Sindh
Memon, a journalist associated with a regional Sindhi channel and newspaper, was found murdered in Feb, 2020 in Naushehro Feroze.
Memon’s body was recovered from a river on February 16 with a wire wrapped around his neck. The reporter had earlier accused the regional Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leadership as well as Naushehro Feroze police of threatening him for unflattering reporting of party chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari’s ‘train march’ in 2019.
The autopsy report came a day after the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Interior was informed that Sindhi journalist Aziz Memon had died a natural death as the medical report did not confirm any violence or poisoning.
Read More: Autopsy report reveals Journalist Aziz Memon was murdered, Was PPP involved?
Hyderabad Additional Inspector General Police Dr Waliullah Dal and other police officers briefed the committee, chaired by Raja Khurram Shahzad Nawaz, that journalist Aziz Memon was the patient of hypertension, sugar and his medical report did not confirm any murder.
Aziz Memon, A Brave Journalist
Last year, Aziz Memon reported on the rented demonstrators hired for Bilawal Bhutto’s train march. He was found dead in a canal. Police suspect it to be murder by strangulation as a wire was found wrapped around his neck.
Aziz Memon was associated with Kawish Television Network News (KTN) in Interior Sindh and had reported that PPP rented hundreds of poor people from nearby villages to welcome Bilawal Bhutto during his long march on the train from Karachi to Larkana last year. These rented people were hired to arrange a sham grand welcome for Bilawal Bhutto on the railway station, crafting the optics of PPP’s wide following across Sindh.
Strongly condemns brutal killing of Zulfiqar Ali Mandrani, a journalist from Jacobadbad #Sindh.
This is second murder of a journalist in Sindh in couple of months after Aziz Memon murder and his murderers are still roaming freely.
— Arsalan Taj (@ArsalanGhumman) May 26, 2020
In his story, he added that MNA PPP Syed Abrar Ali Shah and Town Municipal Committee Halani had hired people initially to welcome Bilawal Bhutto for Rs.2000 each but they ended giving up Rs.200 to people after which the rented demonstrators protested and he reported the incident.
A few days ago, his video informing the authorities about threats to life emerged on social media. Unfortunately, no timely action was taken by the authorities and police to save Aziz Memon’s life.
In his video, he alleged that local PPP leadership and SSP Naushero Feroze are threatening him and his family ever since he reported the story. He said his children are harassed by these people. He pleaded for shelter probably in Islamabad to save his life.
Read More: Aziz Memon Murder: Sindh government forms a toothless JIT, experts raise questions
He said he does not have any party affiliations, nor with PTI or PPP, and he is a neutral journalist that he declared in his oath as well. He also requested Bilawal Bhutto to save his life. In a message to PPP’s chairperson, he said that Bilawal Bhutto is a rational man, who must understand that like any other journalist he just reported the incident and that that was not a fabricated story because the complainants were also shown.
although the killer of journalist Aziz Memon has been arrested yet it is to be seen whether the Sindh police succumb to the mounting political pressure or not. However, the authorities have now admitted that the journalist was murdered for his vocal reporting on local issues.