Karachi police have arrested a man who spent three years posing as a general to grab land and solicit favours from the government in a country where the military holds formidable power.
According to foreign media report, Maqsood Shah, 52, was arrested
near an army area in eastern Karachi as he strolled in uniform to meet a
government official in order to clinch approval for an illegal land
transfer, officials said.
A senior police official Ghulam Subhani told that they have arrested a
man who runs a private hospital but has been successfully pretending to
be a lieutenant general for three years to grab land and garner undue
favoursShah was detained after allegedly threatening the official in
question, who subsequently tipped off police.
“We checked him out to confirm that he was a fake and arrested him outside the cantonment,” Subhani said.
“He is the brother of a retired army colonel who is abroad. We found
fake military gear, an AK-47 rifle and a Blackberry from his house.”
Police accused Shah of ringing up several provincial cabinet ministers and pretending to be a general in order to solicit “undue favours”.
Police accused Shah of ringing up several provincial cabinet ministers and pretending to be a general in order to solicit “undue favours”.
He even attended the funeral of influential local politician Pir Pagara, paying his respects in uniform without being detected.
The police said he would be put on trial and faced a maximum sentence
of five years if found guilty of fraud. A military spokesman said he
had no comment. SANA
