ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar on Friday said that those responsible for the attack on a prisoner van carrying PTI activists will face severe punishment.
In response to the incident, Tarar described the attempt to free the detained PTI activists, who were being transported to District Jail Attock, as a premeditated plan. He revealed that security forces managed to re-apprehend all 19 escaped prisoners, including four attackers—one of whom is the son of a PTI MPA.
Tarar further stated that two vehicles and weapons were confiscated from those arrested, and police are continuing to search for other suspects involved.
He criticized PTI politicians' responses to the incident, calling them “ridiculous,” and mentioned that CCTV footage from the toll plaza confirms the attack. He emphasized that the incident will serve as a test case, with those involved facing exemplary punishment.
Previously, unidentified gunmen attacked prison vans near Sangjani Toll Plaza, attempting to free PTI prisoners charged with terrorism.
The attackers reportedly shattered windows on two vans carrying around 100 prisoners, primarily from Attock Jail, though several high-profile prisoners who initially escaped were later recaptured.
Inspector General of Police (IGP) Syed Ali Nasir Rizvi stated that 18 to 20 assailants, including a Khyber Pakhtunkhwa MPA’s son, were involved in the ambush on three prisoner vans carrying 82 detainees.
