Islamabad, February 24 – The Lahore police remain unaware of the whereabouts of a Canadian national, who is alleged to have been kidnapped on February 19, according to local media reports.
Hamza Ahmad Khan, a Canadian citizen who is conducting doctoral research, disappeared in the early hours of February 19 after leaving his residence in Lahore, according to the First Information Report (FIR) filed at the police station, as reported by Dawn, Pakistan's leading daily.
The FIR was filed after Khan's friend, Yousuf Rasheed, filed a complaint, in which he stated that Ahmad arrived in Pakistan on February 13 to work on his PhD thesis and was staying with him in DHA. He said that Ahmad had booked a taxi through a ride-hailing service and left his house on February 19 between 1 am and 2 am, and he has been missing since then.
Rasheed told the police that they had tried to find Ahmad on their own, but were unsuccessful, fearing that he might have been kidnapped. He demanded legal action against those responsible for the alleged kidnapping.
Speaking to Dawn, Ahmad's brother, Awais Ahmad Khan, stated that their family had contacted the ride-hailing service to obtain details about the ride, alleging that it was cancelled midway. He said that his brother dropped a girl at her house in the taxi and then went to his residence, but he did not arrive there.
According to Awais, they have CCTV footage of the house where Hamza Ahmad Khan dropped the girl and left for his house, but he did not arrive there. He mentioned that the taxi company did not provide them with details, but assured them that they would provide details to law enforcement agencies if contacted, adding that no one from the police contacted the company.
Awais Ahmad Khan stated that the police were not cooperating with the family. He mentioned that they would seek assistance from the Canadian embassy to register the case, adding that the family is considering filing a plea in court to find Hamza Ahmad Khan. He stated that he lives in the US while their family is from Karachi, where their parents currently reside.
Senior Superintendent of Police (Investigation) Muhammad Naveed stated that investigators have not yet found the whereabouts of Hamza Ahmad Khan. Naveed said, "We are still clueless about the whereabouts of the abducted person," adding that police had obtained initial details from the complainant and the ride-hailing service.
