KARACHI:
A court in Karachi on Saturday granted police physical custody of alleged drug dealer Anmol alias Pinky till May 22 in one of the many cases against her.
On Tuesday, police in Karachi arrested a woman accused of running one of the city’s most organized drug supply networks. The suspect, identified as Anmol alias Pinky, was arrested during a joint operation by the city police and a civic agency at a flat in the Garden area.
On Wednesday, police in Karachi secured a three-day physical custody of the suspect, further intensifying what authorities described as a fast-growing drug investigation with far-reaching connections.
Various courts heard several cases involving her, including drug and murder-related cases. Judges in South, Central and Malir districts reserved orders on police requests for Pinky’s physical custody in 15 cases, including one related to murder charges.
At the district court, there were drug and homicide cases against her.
Read: New drug case traced to ‘Pinky’ as probe widens
The Central Court magistrate remanded Anmol in the custody of the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) till May 22 in a drug case. The court also directed the investigating officer to submit a status report at the next hearing.
During the case at the Southern Court, the police presented her to the duty judge, where she claimed that she had been subjected to violence and falsely implicated in several cases.
“My name is Anmol. I have been detained for 20 days. I was exposed to a bag full of drugs. Six men put me in a vehicle and took me away. After 15 days I was handed over to the police. I am forced to name people under pressure,” she said in court.
She further alleged that she was instructed to identify persons whose names were dictated to her.
The court observed that her statement was not properly recorded and directed the investigating officer to produce previous court orders. The judge also inquired about the accused’s health.
Anmol further claimed in the court that “around 20 to 25 cases” were registered against her and alleged that she had been threatened that her family would be taken away if she did not “accept everything”.
She also claimed that a person from Banigala was mentioned and that she was pressured to name him. According to her statement, she was initially brought in a van and instructed on how to proceed, while the house from which her arrest was shown “wasn’t mine”.
Read more: Police in Karachi arrest drug queen ‘Pinky’
The Magistrate directed that previous court orders and a report should be produced before it.
In a murder case registered at Baghdadi police station, the investigating officer requested further remand and informed the court that further investigations had been conducted.
The judge asked the officer what investigation had been done so far.
In response, the investigating officer stated that the police had investigated Anmol and registered 11 more cases against her. He further said that drugs had been recovered from her identification and that she had previously been sent to jail on three occasions. The officer added that she had been on the run for a long time.
The judge granted a two-day extension in the murder case registered at the Baghdadi police station. In the remaining 12 cases, the court ordered her to be sent to prison and requested status reports from the investigating officer.
The judge also asked about the absconding accused Qamar, to which the investigating officer replied that he was wanted under Section 512.
During the hearing, some lawyers claimed to represent her, but Anmol told the court, “These are not my lawyers.”
The judge ordered her to speak only to her own lawyer and expressed displeasure at the situation.
Also read: ‘Stop us if you can’: drug queenpin Pinky challenges the system
Separately at the Malir court, Anmol was produced in a narcotics recovery case registered at Sachal police station. The investigating officer informed the court that drugs had been recovered from a house on her identification.
The accused denied the allegations and told the court, “I am being implicated in false cases. I was taken from Lahore.”
The Malir court sent her to judicial custody in the Sachal case and directed the investigating officer to submit a case within 14 days.
The prosecution later decided to challenge the Malir court’s decision. Sindh Acting Prosecutor General Muntazir Mehdi said a criminal review petition would be filed.
