11 police teams arrest PAF Group Captain Asim Tariq Shaheed murder suspect in nine hours: IGP Rizvi

ISLAMABAD, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 6th Jul, 2026) Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) Police arrested the prime suspect in the murder of Pakistan Air Force (PAF) Group Captain Asim Tariq Shaheed within nine hours of the incident after a large-scale operation involving 11 investigation teams, over 1,100 police personnel, Safe City surveillance, Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology and human intelligence, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Islamabad Syed Ali Nasir Rizvi said late Sunday.

Addressing a late-night press conference, Rizvi said the investigation was launched immediately after the incident under the directions of Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, who remained in constant contact with the police command and ensured the provision of every required resource throughout the operation.

The IGP said the incident occurred at around 11 a.m., when the suspect, Saad Abbasi, allegedly attempted to take his colleague Nimra to a park instead of her intended destination in Melody. The woman refused to accompany him and insisted that she would not go anywhere else.

Rizvi said Group Captain Asim Tariq Shaheed, who happened to be passing through the area, stopped after noticing the woman in distress and asked the suspect to step away from her. Instead, the accused pulled out a pistol, opened fire on the PAF officer and fled the scene after martyring him.

The IGP Rizvi said the accused had tried to evade arrest by changing his shirt, switching off his mobile phone and SIM card, and purchasing a ticket from a private bus service in an attempt to escape.

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Despite these efforts, investigators tracked and arrested him through a combination of AI-assisted analysis, Safe City camera footage, digital forensics and human intelligence.

Rizvi said police teams examined footage from more than 200 CCTV cameras, analysed over 137 Call Detail Records (CDRs) and carried out simultaneous raids at multiple locations. Separate teams were dispatched to Mianwali, Lahore and Abbottabad as part of the operation, as the suspect belonged to Abbottabad.

The IGP disclosed that preliminary investigation had also revealed the suspect had allegedly been involved in an earlier kidnapping case in which he had taken a woman to Mianwali, although the matter was later settled between the parties.

Paying tribute to the martyred officer, Rizvi said Group Captain Asim Tariq Shaheed displayed extraordinary courage by sacrificing his life to protect an innocent woman, adding that his bravery would always be remembered with honour.

He said Islamabad Police, with the support of all law enforcement agencies, would ensure the case was investigated on scientific and professional lines so that the accused received exemplary punishment in accordance with the law./APP-rzr-mkz