KARACHI: Police arrested rice trader Zeeshan Naz and an accomplice on Thursday over the Karachi fake-death plot, alleging they killed Qurban Hussain and burned his body to deceive creditors.
Senior Superintendent of Police West Tariq Mastoi said Naz planned the killing to stage his own death and avoid repaying substantial debts. Police traced him through technical evidence despite his attempt to change his appearance.
Investigators found Hussain’s partially burned body inside Naz’s car near Zero Point in the Shah Beg Goth area of Surjani Town.
Naz’s identity documents, mobile phone and other belongings initially led investigators to believe that he had died. His phone contained a recorded message claiming that his family had no involvement in his business affairs.
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Biometric verification later identified the victim as 38-year-old Qurban Hussain, son of Ghulam Sabir Khan. He was a cleaner from Muzaffargarh who lived with his wife in Sector 7-A, North Karachi.
Police sources said Naz owed more than Rs550 million to between 60 and 70 people. Investigators allege that he used Hussain’s body and his own belongings to make the staged death appear genuine.
Police were questioning both arrested suspects. Authorities had not disclosed the accomplice’s identity or announced formal charges by Thursday.
