Muneeb Butt gets interim bail in short-term kidnapping case

An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Karachi has granted interim bail to actor Muneeb Butt in a case pertaining to alleged short-term kidnapping.

The case was registered last month by the Airport police on the complaint of a man identified as Mutaal Khan. According to the FIR, the complainant said he was travelling to the airport on April 22 for a flight to Lahore when a double-cabin vehicle carrying four armed men intercepted his cab.

He alleged that the suspects abducted him at gunpoint, claiming he had been involved in an accident.

The complainant stated that he was taken to different locations, where the suspects allegedly snatched his mobile phone and transferred 8,600 USDT from his account. He further claimed that his laptop was also taken before he was later abandoned in Karachi’s Korangi Industrial Area.

Speaking to an English daily, the complainant's lawyer said that police had arrested four suspects identified as Hamza, Saalim, Shahid, and Wazir. He added that other individuals, including a police constable and actor Muneeb Butt, had also been named in the case.

According to the lawyer, investigators informed him that the actor was accused of facilitating at least two suspects while they were hiding in Islamabad. However, he said it was still unclear whether the actor had any direct involvement in the alleged crime.

Muneeb Butt later obtained protective bail from the Islamabad High Court before appearing before the Karachi anti-terrorism court and filing a pre-arrest bail application.

After hearing arguments from the actor’s legal team, the court granted interim bail against a surety bond of Rs100,000 and fixed June 8 for further proceedings and confirmation of bail.