Pakistani appeals court overturns convictions of 4 suspects in bombing near U.S. consulate

Tuesday, October 31st 2006, 5:49 am

By: News On 6

KARACHI, Pakistan (AP) _ An appeals court on Tuesday overturned the convictions of four terror suspects in a 2002 car bombing outside the U.S. Consulate in Karachi that killed 14 Pakistanis, lawyers said.

The court threw out the sentences of death for Mohammed Hanif and Mohammed Imran and life imprisonment for Mohammed Sharib and Hafiz Zubair, saying the earlier trial court decision was based on "flawed evidence,'' defense lawyer Abdul Waheed Katpar said.

The suspects had been arrested following the June 2002 car bombing near the U.S. diplomatic mission in the southern port city of Karachi. No Americans were killed.

Prosecutor Habib Ahmed said the government will examine details of Tuesday's ruling by the Sindh High Court before filing an appeal in the Supreme Court to reinstate the suspects' conviction.