ANI
14 Jan 2022, 23:57 GMT+10
Islamabad [Pakistan], January 14 (ANI): A plot to murder exiled blogger and activist Ahmad Waqass Goraya has been revealed before a court in the United Kingdom, during the trial of 31-year-old Gohir Khan, a British-Pakistani based in the UK, local media reported.
The trial began at the Kingston-upon-Thames crown court on Thursday, with the prosecution revealing details of the plot to murder Goraya who is a Pakistani origin man but based in Rotterdam, Netherlands, according to Dawn newspaper.
The prosecution said that Khan was hired by persons who appeared to be based in Pakistan to carry out the "intended killing" of Goraya.
The financial rewards for his actions were believed to be significant, with a payment of 1,00,000 Pound on offer. At the time, the prosecution claimed, the defendant was in significant debt, with no clear means of paying his creditors, Dawn reported.
According to the publication, the prosecution described how the defendant travelled to Rotterdam and sought to locate the victim, purchasing a knife which he intended to use to kill Goraya.
After a few days of unsuccessful attempts to locate the victim, Khan gave up and travelled back to the UK. He was arrested on his return, the prosecution said.
Khan was reportedly sent a picture of the blogger as well as his address by a middleman, identified by the prosecution as "Mudz", "Zed", and "Papa".
Messages exchanged between Khan and the middleman show the defendant asking for information about the victim. Khan asked, "Is it a deep sea fish, or just tuna?" in an attempt to understand whether the 'job' was big or small.
He also said "sharks are expensive, tunas [sic] cheap", implying that if it's a bigger target it will cost more money. The middleman responded by saying that the target was "just tuna, but not UK tuna, European tuna. A bit of travelling involved."Throughout their exchange, Khan and the middleman used fish and fishing metaphors, such as fishing accessories, to refer to the job, according to Dawn.
The jury was told that though Khan accepts sending and receiving all of the messages admitted as evidence and accepts being the person on the CCTV travelling to and around Rotterdam, he maintains that he never intended that Goraya should be killed.
Goraya is an activist and blogger who left Pakistan after he and five other bloggers were abducted and later released in Islamabad in 2017, as per Dawn. (ANI)Get a daily dose of Europe Sun news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Europe Sun.
More InformationNEW YORK CITY, New York: New York State's highest court has struck down a law this week that would have allowed over 800,000 legal...
The death toll in Gaza on the weekend has passed 50,000, local health authorities have reported. What started the carnage was the Hamas-led...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced plans to invest up to US$100 million in research to develop...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has removed a 2024 advisory from its website that called gun...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: Industry leaders are pushing the Trump administration to clear regulatory obstacles slowing the rollout of self-driving...
NEW YORK, New York – Israeli military forces caused deaths and unnecessary suffering of Palestinian patients while occupying hospitals...
NEW YORK, New York - Investors bought up stocks on U.S. markets Monday after President Donald Trump indicated he may pull back on some...
BOSTON, Massachusetts: Private equity investor William Chisholm has agreed to buy the Boston Celtics in a record-breaking deal worth...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: The cost of borrowing for a home in the U.S. ticked up again this week, marking the second straight increase as homebuyers...
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA: Apple's ambitious foray into streaming is proving costly, with the company reportedly losing over US$1 billion...
NEW YORK CITY, New York: Gold's record-breaking rally is expected to continue, with Citi Research increasing its three-month price...
BOSTON, Massachusetts: A routine safety mechanism at data centers nearly triggered a regional power crisis last summer, highlighting...