Forensics found Zahir Jaffer’s shirt stained with Noor Mukadam’s blood — Islamabad police

ISLAMABAD: A forensic analysis revealed that the shirt of Zahir Jaffer, the prime accused in the grisly murder of 27-year-old Noor Mukadam in July last year, had been stained with the blood of the victim, the Islamabad police said on Tuesday, as they sought to explain an earlier statement of the investigating officer in the case. 
Mukadam, the daughter of a former Pakistani diplomat, was found beheaded at a residence in Islamabad’s upscale F-7/4 neighborhood, in a case that has sparked public outrage and grabbed media attention unlike any other recent crime against women. The prime accused was arrested from the crime scene on the day of the murder and has since been in Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail. 
The case is now in the concluding stage in an Islamabad district court, where additional sessions judge Atta Rabbani has been conducting the hearings. Eyewitnesses have recorded their statements in the case and defense attorneys are now cross-examining them. 
In Monday’s proceedings, Jaffer’s counsel, Sikandar Zulqarnain, cross-examined the investigating officer, Inspector Abdul Sattar, to point out weaknesses and loopholes in his testimony. Inspector Sattar said Jaffer’s fingerprints were not found on the knife recovered from the crime scene, while his pants did not contain any blood stains either. The investigating officer’s statement compelled the Islamabad inspector general (IG) to review progress in the case at a high-level huddle, followed by the issuance of an explanation by the capital’s police. 
“The pant was not stained with blood, but the shirt of the accused was stained with blood of the victim Noor Mukadam, as per PFSA (Punjab Forensic Science Agency) report,” the Islamabad police said in a statement, adding that Monday’s court proceedings were “misinterpreted” in some media reports. 
The police, however, maintained that Jaffer’s fingerprints were not found on the murder weapon. 
“The knife recovered from the crime scene was taken into custody, sealed by NFSA (National Forensic Science Agency) and sent to PFSA for fingerprints, which could not be developed by the latter,” the statement read. 
“But the report confirmed blood of Noor Mukadam on the knife.” 
Explaining why was not a photogrammetry test of Mukadam conducted, the Islamabad police said the test is conducted for the identification of the accused, so that he could not negate his presence at the crime scene. 
“The detailed report of the PFSA is yet to be read on the next hearing, which contains comprehensive forensic evidence, sufficient for the conviction of the accused,” the police statement read further. 
“The crime scene was visited by senior most officers at the time of occurrence and was completely preserved by forensic experts of National Forensic Science Agency.” 
The PFSA report confirmed that Mukadam was raped before being murdered, while investigators found Jaffer’s DNA i.e. skin under her nails as well as the blood-stained knuckleduster from the crime scene, it added. 
On Monday, Jaffer had walked into the courtroom along with police officials unlike his previous appearances in a chair or on a stretcher. He had remained seated on the floor of the courtroom during the hearing. 
Others charged in the case include Jaffer’s parents, Zakir Jaffer and Asmat Adamjee, their three-household staff, Iftikhar, Jan Muhammad and Jameel, and six workers from Therapy Works, a counselling center from where Jaffer had received certification to become a therapist and where he had been receiving treatment in the weeks leading up to the murder. 
The court will resume hearing the case on Wednesday.