Man sentenced to death over 2019 murders of TV anchor Mureed Abbas, friend

A sessions court on Thursday awarded capital punishment to the key accused, Atif Zaman, in a case pertaining to the 2019 murders of television anchor Mureed Abbas and his friend, Khizer Hayat.

The case relates to the fatal shooting of Abbas and Hayat in Karachi's Khayaban-i-Bukhari area on the night of July 9, 2019.

Police had booked the main accused, Atif Zaman, along with his brother, Adil Zaman. Investigators said that the two victims were their business partners. Adil Zaman was later declared a proclaimed absconder after he fled despite the Supreme Court's Karachi Registry cancelling his bail.

Mureed Abbas, who worked as an anchor at Bol News, was shot dead during what police initially described as a dispute of a personal nature. Khizer Hayat also suffered gunshot wounds in the attack and was taken to a private hospital, where he later died.

The case was initially tried by an anti-terrorism court. However, in October 2019, it was transferred to a sessions court after the ATC ruled that the offence did not fall within its jurisdiction.