JEDDAH: Pakistani authorities have arrested a suspect in the murder of Saudi diplomat Hassan Misfir Al-Qahtani, who was gunned down by unidentified persons on motorbikes in Karachi last Monday. Sources at Karachi Police said that a Pakistani named Muhammad Muntazir was being held for questioning over the murder and an incident a week earlier when two grenades were thrown at the Saudi Consulate without causing damage or casualties. Some press outlets named the suspect as Muntazir Imam, and said he went by his alias Tunda. According to Al-Watan Arabic daily, he was detained in the Faisal Kaloni District of Karachi during a series of campaigns to round up persons suspected of involvement in murder and sectarian violence. Other sources, meanwhile, said the Pakistani Ministry of Interior is offering a reward of Rs5 million (approx. SR220,000) for any information concerning Al-Qahtani's death. The sources said that the move followed the Kingdom's request to Islamabad that investigations into the diplomat's murder be concluded as swiftly as possible. The 30-year-old Al-Qahtani was shot to death by four men on two motorcycles while he was traveling to work alone by car Monday morning.
