- Prosecution fails to prove narcotics charges against accused.
- Defence says blood, chemical tests find no methamphetamine.
- Accident killed father, daughter near Pakistan Maritime Museum.
KARACHI: A judicial magistrate in Karachi’s District East on Friday acquitted a female driver in a narcotics case registered after the deadly Karsaz road accident, citing lack of evidence.
The prosecution failed to prove the charges against the accused during the hearing.
The defence counsel argued that neither the chemical analysis nor the blood test detected methamphetamine, commonly known as crystal meth or ice, in the samples.
The lawyer further alleged that samples collected from the accused by police had been tampered with and claimed that the investigating officer had concealed the blood test report during the investigation.
The court, finding insufficient evidence to establish the prosecution’s case, acquitted the accused in the narcotics case.
The incident occurred on August 19, 2024, when the suspect’s luxury vehicle crashed into multiple vehicles near the Pakistan Maritime Museum, killing 26-year-old Aamna Arif and her 60-year-old father, Imran Arif.
Several people were also injured in the accident and were taken to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) for treatment, while the deceased were brought to the hospital for medico-legal formalities.
The female driver also sustained a head injury in the crash and underwent a CT scan at the JPMC. Blood and urine samples were subsequently collected from her as part of the medico-legal examination.
On August 31, 2024, police said methamphetamine had been detected in the suspect’s blood and urine samples. A separate case was then registered against her under provisions relating to the use of a prohibited substance.
The latest acquittal is separate from the murder case registered over the deaths of Aamna and Imran. In October 2024, a district and sessions court acquitted the female driver in that case after the victims’ families submitted a reconciliation agreement.
Earlier, the victims’ heirs had pardoned the suspect and told the court they had no objection to her being granted bail, maintaining that the accident was not intentional.
