Islamabad police given three days to recover abducted NCCIA deputy director

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday gave police a three-day deadline to recover Muhammad Usman, the alleged abducted Deputy Director of the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA).

Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani issued the directive during hearing on a petition filed by the abductee's wife, Rozina Usman. Advocate Raja Rizwan Abbasi appeared on her behalf.

During the proceedings, Abbasi informed the court that his client had recently told him she was under pressure to withdraw the petition. “I fear she may also have been picked up,” he said, noting that her phone is now switched off and she is unreachable.

He told the court that Muhammad Usman was working on high-profile cases and had been abducted in a white car from the basement parking of his residential apartment on October 14. He added that CCTV footage showed the vehicle had a fake number plate, raising serious concerns about law enforcement effectiveness. "If the vehicle had fake plates, how was it allowed to ply freely in Islamabad?" questioned Justice Kayani.

The judge expressed serious concern over the incident, noting that the city has numerous security checkpoints and CCTV coverage. “This is a very serious matter,” he said. “You have the means to track this — recover the abductee or we’ll take the same measures other benches have started to consider.” The court also ordered that call data records (CDRs) be obtained for the threatening calls allegedly received by the petpetitione.

The police informed the court that a case had been registered at Shams Colony Police Station and that efforts were underway to secure the safe recovery of the abductee. While police requested seven day's, the court granted only three days.

Justice Kayani warned that if Muhammad Usman is not recovered within that period, the Director of NCCIA and the Inspector General (IG) of Islamabad Police will be required to appear in person.