Islamabad police on Friday arrested the gardener of accused Zahir Jaffar in Noor Muqaddam murder case.
According to the 24News HD TV channel, gardener Jan Muhammad had not come in contact with the police after the tragedy.
As per the reports, the gardener had visited the accused’s residence for his routine work on the incident day but did not stay there.
The gardener will be asked what he knows about the murder, the police sources said.
Four days ago, a court in Islamabad extended the judicial remand of parents of the prime suspect in the murder case of Noor Muqaddam, daughter of ex-Pakistan’s envoy, till August 23.
The Islamabad police had arrested the parents of Noor Muqaddam’s killer too on July 25, 2021.
Zahir Zakir’s father Zakir Jaffer and mother Asmat Adamjee were taken into custody by the police in the federal capital late on Saturday night.
Earlier, the police also arrested Zahir Zakir’s domestic helpers Iftikhar and Jamil for investigation.
The arrests of Zakir Jaffer and Asmat Adamjee were made after a detailed statement by Noor Muqaddam’s father, Shaukat Muqaddam.
The police produced both parents before a duty magistrate on Sunday, who handed them and their two servants to police on physical remand for two days.
The police, however, did not rule out more arrests linked to Noor’s murder. They said the police are trying to piece together all the direct or indirect evidence linked to this murder.
The police said Zakir Jaffer, Asmat Adamjee, servants Iftikhar and Jameel were arrested on charges of hiding facts and assistance in crime.
The sources quoted Zahir Zakir as confessing: “I killed Noor because she was ditching me.”
The insiders added the record showed the accused was in contact with his parents on the day of the incident and told them about the murder too.
He made four calls and the total talk time was 30-minute, they said adding the call record led to the arrest of his parents.
They were taken into custody three days ago on charges of abetting the crime and concealing the facts.
A district and sessions court in Islamabad sent Zahir’s parents and two servants to the jail on judicial remand.
Noor Muqaddam, daughter of ex-Pakistan’s envoy Shaukat Muqaddam, was murdered in the federal capital’s sector F-7/4 on July 22, 2021.
Reporter: Usman Javed