ISLAMABAD / LAHORE: As Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif vowed to solve the mystery of ‘toxic letters’ received by around 17 judges of the superior courts, the Counter-Terrorism Department of the police seems to be in a bind in its efforts to trace those behind these letters.
Investigators in the capital have traced these letters to the General Post Office in Rawalpindi, but due to the absence of CCTV cameras on the premises, the senders have yet to be identified.
After the letters were opened by the court staff, it was widely believed that the suspicious powder in the envelopes was ‘anthrax’, a harmful substance that causes an infection upon contact with skin.
However, forensic analysis has revealed that the letters sent to LHC judges did not contain anthrax, rather “carbohydrates having arsenic traces”.
Initial investigations have revealed that the arsenic was not in its pure form.
“There were no traces of anthrax or any other toxic chemicals,” sources told Dawn. They added the investigating agencies had also been instructed to trace the fingerprints on the envelopes to catch the attackers.
The Punjab Safe City Authority had also been instructed to trace the senders of the suspicious letters through its surveillance cameras installed across the provincial capital.
At Thursday’s cabinet meeting, PM Shehbaz Sharif vowed to unearth the plot apparently aimed at threatening judges of superior courts through letters carrying a suspicious powder.
“The government is investigating the matter with the sense of responsibility to uncover the reality,” the prime minister said in his speech at the federal cabinet.
