US diplomats filming sensitive locations held & released in Lahore—Diplomats were using fake registration plates: Police
LAHORE—Law enforcement agencies Friday
arrested two US diplomats for filming sensitive locations in Lahore Cantt, but released them a few hours later on the intervention of the US embassy officials.
Police said two US diplomats were riding a grey SUV having tinted glasses. They were stopped at Sherpao Bridge for checking, but they refused to come out of the vehicle. Upon this, high officials of police and law enforcement agencies arrived at the scene and brought the US diplomats to Sarver Road Police Station, where they were questioned for two hours.
Police sources said two
US diplomats, included a woman identified as Ms. Morgan were video filming sensitive locations in the Cantt area.
Later, on the intervention of the US embassy officials, the diplomats were released, but their video camera has been seized.
Acceding to TV reports, the SUV, the diplomats were riding, was having a
fake registration plate IDL 1967, which is originally allotted to a Pakistani national, resident of Islamabad for his Honda Civic, he bought back in 2001.
“The detained persons were US diplomats, who were later released on intervention of the US embassy,” police sources said the diplomats carrying complete legal documents and therefore, they were allowed to go.
Interestingly,
this is the second such incident involving US diplomats at the same police check post in less than a week. In first such incident, a car carrying US diplomats was stopped at the check post for having tinted glasses, but later it was let go on the intervention of the US embassy.
Such interactions between the US ‘diplomats’ and law enforcement agencies have risen over the past months with reports claiming the presence and operations of US agency Blackwater in Pakistan.
In one such incident in Islamabad on Thursday, unidentified US diplomats were stopped at a police check post in Islamabad and asked to come out of their vehicle for checking, but no only they refused to comply, but abused the security personnel and drove their Land Cruiser car away.
Meantime, SSP Captain Liaqat arrived at the check post on a routine visit. Upon knowing the situation, he chased the vehicle and stopped it a few miles away.
The US diplomats present in the vehicle showed their cards to the police official, but he did not accept and brought the vehicle back to the check post and only let the US diplomats go, after begging pardon from the police personnel, they had misbehaved with.
