Top Pak Lashkar militant, associate sentenced to life for killing teen in ISIS stylemilitant

SRINAGAR: Law has finally caught up with dreaded Pakistani Lashkar-e-Toiba commander and his associate after a local court sentenced the duo to life imprisonment for killing a youth in ISIS-style seven years ago in the apple rich town of Sopore in North Kashmir’s Baramulla district.

Lashkar-e-Toiba commander Naveed Baloch of Shujabad, Multan in Pakistan and his accomplice Feroz Dar were convicted by the local court in the gruesome assassination of teenager Suhail Ahmad Sofi in 2013.

“Was a satisfying last day of the year? A Pakistani terrorist Naveed Baloch of Shujabad Multan, Pakistan and his accomplice sentenced for life by local court for killing an innocent young Kashmiri boy in Sopore in 2013. I was Superintendent of Police of the area back then and this Pakistani terrorist was caught alive”, tweeted Imtiyaz Hussain, Senior Superintendent of Police, Security, who was then SP of Sopore and under whose supervision the case was cracked.

The incident dates back to March 2013 when Baloch and his accomplice killed Sofi in cold blood in the dead of the night. Both fled from the scene after committing the crime. Later police went whole hog and caught Baloch alive, a rare catch given that most of hardcore foreign Jihadis prefer to die rather land in the custody of the security forces.

Later police made a watertight case and after seven years of trial both Baloch and his local associate were sentenced to life imprisonment. “District police Sopore successfully secured conviction of two persons who were involved in killing of civilian Suhail Ahmad Sofi of Drabgam, Sopore”, said a police spokesman.

Giving details, the spokesman said on March 19, 2013, police station Sopore registered a case about the killing of civilian by the terrorists. “During the course of investigation police accused both the accused --Naveed Baloch of Multan, Pakistan, who was then operating in Sopore as commander of proscribed Lashkar-e-Toiba, and his accomplice Feroz Dar of Sopore for their involvement in killing civilian Suhail Sofi”, he said.

Police said based on circumstantial evidence collected from the scene of crime and other evidences collected by the investigating officers during the course of investigation, the court convicted both of them and sentenced them tolife imprisonment for their involvement in the killing of a civilian.