10-Year-Old Case: Two Policemen Sentenced to 6 Years in Prison for Allowing Prisoners to Escape in Gujranwala

Islamabad (Staff Reporter): An Anti-Corruption Special Court in Gujranwala has sentenced two police officials to six years imprisonment each in a decade-old case involving the escape of two prisoners from a police van. The court, presided over by its judge, convicted ASI Nawaz Ali and Constable Bashir Ahmed, sentencing both to six years rigorous imprisonment and imposing a fine of Rs150,000 on each. The driver of the prisoner van was handed a harsher punishment of 12 years in prison. The case was registered on May 30, 2016, at Civil Lines Police Station, Gujranwala. According to the prosecution, two prisoners were being transported from the jail to the court in a prisoner van. Outside the district courts, accomplices of the prisoners offered spiked juice to the police officials, causing them to fall unconscious. Taking advantage of the situation, the two prisoners managed to escape from the van. Police sources said the escaped prisoners were facing serious charges of murder and terrorism. The judgment comes after a lengthy trial spanning ten years. The court has now held the police personnel responsible for negligence in performing their duty.