ZIARAT: The kidnapped son of Assistant Commissioner (AC) Ziarat, Muhammad Afzal, has been rescued from the mountainous area of Harnai, Levies officials confirmed on Thursday.
According to Levies sources, Mustansar Bilal was abandoned by unknown abductors in the rugged mountains of Harnai late Wednesday night. Security personnel later recovered him safely and shifted him to a secure location, where his family was reunited with him.
During his initial statement, Mustansar told investigators that he had no information about the whereabouts of his father, Assistant Commissioner Muhammad Afzal, who remains missing.
The abduction took place on August 10, when armed men kidnapped the Assistant Commissioner and his son from the Zizari area of Ziarat. The attackers intercepted the family while they were on a picnic, held them at gunpoint, and took the AC and his son away. The kidnappers released the rest of the family at the scene and later freed the official’s gunman and driver a short distance away.
The assailants also set fire to the official vehicle before fleeing the area.
Following the incident, security forces and the local administration launched an extensive search operation in Ziarat and adjoining areas to locate the abducted officer.
Deputy Commissioner Zakaullah Durrani said the kidnapping had caused “serious concern” among the authorities and security agencies.
He added that efforts were underway to recover Assistant Commissioner Muhammad Afzal, while multiple teams of Levies and other law enforcement agencies continued search operations in the region.
It is worth noting that a similar incident occurred in June, when Assistant Commissioner Muhammad Hanif Noorzai of Tehsil Tump, Kech district, was also kidnapped by unidentified gunmen.
Assistant Commissioner Tump Muhammad Hanif Noorzai was also abducted at gunpoint by unidentified assailants from the Tump tehsil of the Kech district of Balochistan in June.
At the time of incidnet, Muhammad Hanif Noorzai was kidnapped from his car in the Sarinkan area of Tump while travelling to his town on Eidul Adha holidays. Later, he was safely recovered.
