CBI takes over probe into death of former Punjab DGP Mohammad Mustafa’s son
Panchkula: The Central Bureau of Investigation has taken over the inquiry into the death of Aqil Akhter, son of former Punjab Director General of Police Mohammad Mustafa and former state minister Razia Sultana. Aqil was found dead in Panchkula on October 16 under circumstances that the family and police records describe as suspicious.
A CBI spokesperson said on Thursday that an FIR has been registered against Mustafa, Razia Sultana, their daughter, and daughter-in-law under Sections 103(1) and 61 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. According to The Indian Express, the agency said the case was taken over after the Haryana government recommended a central investigation.
On October 20, a complaint filed at Panchkula's Mansa Devi Complex Police Station and the Haryana Police had earlier booked the four under charges of murder and criminal conspiracy. Later the case was referred to the CBI for further inquiry, before the investigation.
According to the agency, investigators are looking into family disputes that were reportedly ongoing. Aqil had, in a video posted on social media on August 27, claimed that he had discovered a relationship between his father and his own wife, and had alleged that members of his family were planning either to harm him or implicate him in a case.
The CBI has begun collecting digital records and forensic material and is expected to question those named in the FIR, while further action will follow once preliminary evidence is reviewed.
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South African police arrest suspect in mass shooting that killed 12, including 3 children
Johannesburg (AP): A 32-year-old suspect has been arrested in connection with a mass shooting which claimed the lives of 12 people including three children at an unlicensed pub earlier this month, South African police said on Monday.
The man is suspected of being one of the three people who opened fire on patrons in a pub at Saulsville township, west of South Africa's capital Pretoria, killing 12 people including three children aged 3, 12 and 16.
At least 13 people were also injured during the attack, whose motive remains unknown.
According to the police, the suspect was arrested on Sunday while traveling to Botlokwa in Limpopo province, more than 340 km from where the mass shooting took place on Dec 6.
An unlicensed firearm believed to have been used during the attack was recovered from the suspect's vehicle.
“The 32-year-old suspect was intercepted by Limpopo Tracking Team on the R101 Road in Westenburg precinct. During the arrest, the team recovered an unlicensed firearm, a hand gun, believed to have been used in the commission of the multiple murders. The firearm will be taken to the Forensic Science Laboratory for ballistic analysis,” police said in statement.
The suspect was arrested on the same day that another mass shooting at a pub took place in the Bekkersdal township, west of Johannesburg, in which nine people were killed and 10 wounded when unknown gunmen opened fire on patrons.
Police have since launched a search for the suspects.
South Africa has one of the highest homicide rates in the world and recorded more than 26,000 homicides in 2024 — an average of more than 70 a day. Firearms are by far the leading cause of death in homicides.
The country of 62 million people has relatively strict gun ownership laws, but many killings are committed with illegal guns, according to authorities.
According to police, mass shootings at unlicensed bars are becoming a serious problem. Police shut down more than 11,000 illegal taverns between April and September this year and arrested more than 18,000 people for involvement in illegal liquor sales.
