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Mauritius: Police To Extradite Squadron Of Death Member From Turkey
by Kazi Mahmood
JAKARTA (IslamOnline) - Mauritius police indicated Sunday they have started extradition procedures against a crucial member of the infamous Squadron of Death.
Several members of the Squadron recently arrested by Mauritian police have linked Islam Mohamedally, also known as Islam Pakistan, to a triple murder of political activists in 1996.
His arrest is deemed important and could help implicate jailed Hizbullah leader Mohamed Cehl Meeah Fakeermeah in a series of murders, and violent robberies and crimes on Mauritius.
Police state they have gathered sufficient evidence on major accusations against the Hizbullah leader and need the Islam Pakistan to confirm Cehl Meeah's participation in the series of crimes.
Most of the major protagonists of the Squadron of Death have, since the re-opening of the inquiry on the October 1996 murders, having committed suicide, are dead, leaving the police with little evidence in the impending case.
Strong rumors persisted that the authorities would release Cehl Meeah due to the lack of any concrete or strong evidence against him.
However, IslamOnline was told that police would proceed in pressing charges against Cehl Meeah, and might formally charge him for being the leader of the Squadron of Death.
However, if they cannot garner enough proof to indict him on those charges, they would charge him as an accessory in the various robbery cases the Squadron is said to have perpetrated.
Security officers on the island privately told IslamOnline that the police and judiciary would have difficulty in proving links between the Hizbullah and the Squadron.
They reason that since the death of Squadron head Ibrahim Cheriff (alias Bahim Coco), there is little left for the investigators to rely on.
They said the fact that the inquiry has been tainted by allegations of a possible political vendetta emanating from the ruling class, frustrated that a single person, like Cehl Meeah, managed to ruin their political plans, could be advantageous to lawyers of the jailed leader, IslamOnline was told.
"Chances are that if the lawyers of Cehl Meeah press for [a] conspiracy against him, the courts will have a long haul case at hand," an officer in the secret service told IslamOnline on the phone.
Police attempts to extradite Islam Mohamedally, implicated in the mafia style killing of Babal Joomun, Zulfikar Bheeky and Yousouf Moorad in 1996 by the Squadron, are due to the belief that the accused would also be able to assist in formally indicting Cehl Meeah as giving the orders for the crime.
Mohamedally is a strong ally of Cehl Meeah. He disappeared from Mauritius in November after Squadron member Khadaffi Oozeer made sensational revelations concerning the underground group.
Main suspects currently in jail in the murder case are Tourab Bissessur, Khadaffi Oozeer, Hatim Oozeer and Afzal Chummun, an ex-police constable.
Bissessur and the two Oozeers said Cehl Meeah was the effective leader of the Squadron. Sources said, however, that these three were not hardcore members of the group.
Majistrate Renuka Gunnesh-Daby has approved a request from Mauritius police to press for the extradition of Mohamedally from Turkey. Passport details indicate he entered Turkey late last year and is still in hiding there.
Interpol in Mauritius said they believe Turkish authorities would comply with the demands and arrest Mohamedally soon. Mauritius does not have extradition agreements with Turkey, officials said.
If this fails, local police would issue an International Warrant of Arrest in order to corner Mohamedally, who has strong contacts in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Turkey.
Sources believe he might have fled to Afghanistan, making it virtually impossible to bring him back to Mauritius.
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