Mir Raza death probe: NCCIA nominates deputy director to JIT

KARACHI: The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) has nominated Deputy Director Shehzad Akbar to the joint investigation team (JIT) probing the death of Karachi businessman Mir Raza Ali, with the agency set to provide technical assistance in examining digital evidence.

According to a notification and correspondence sent to the Sindh Home Department, Akbar, who is posted in the NCCIA’s Sindh Zone in Karachi, will represent the agency on the investigation team.

The NCCIA will assist the JIT in examining mobile phone data, social media activity and cryptocurrency records, as well as conducting digital forensic analysis.

The nomination follows a recommendation by a judicial commission that a senior NCCIA representative be included in the team to ensure a comprehensive investigation.

The JIT, headed by DIG Irfan Baloch, was constituted by the Sindh government following recommendations by a judicial commission led by Sindh High Court Justice Omar Sial.

Mir Raza Ali, 25, went missing on July 28 after leaving his home in Karachi’s PECHS area. His body was found in bushes in Gulistan-i-Jauhar the following day.

The judicial commission examined the circumstances surrounding his death and potential lapses in the initial investigation. It recommended a broader investigation involving senior representatives of intelligence agencies, Sindh Rangers and the NCCIA.

The JIT is expected to examine the available evidence and investigate the circumstances surrounding his death.

The commission’s report, later made public by the Sindh government, concluded that Raza had been murdered rather than died by suicide and described the original police investigation as seriously negligent and unprofessional. It said significant evidence had been compromised, did not rule out the possibility of a cover-up and recommended a fresh JIT-led investigation, along with action against officials whose conduct had come under scrutiny.