ISLAMABAD: Ahmad Noorani, The News correspondent in Islamabad, has moved the Cyber Crimes Wing of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) after receiving threatening calls and repeated threatening messages.
Noorani was sent abusive messages and threats by a retired brigadier of the Pakistan Army Tarik Niazi on Twitter and Facebook. The account used by Brigadier (retd) Tarik Niazi is a known account which he usually uses to run different campaigns and spread messages.
Tarik Niazi in his threatening and abusive message said that he was in Islamabad and invited the journalist to meet him to settle scores. However, some sources say that Niazi often stays in Canada and initially belongs to Rawalpindi.
The journalist’s complaint to FIA also discusses three threatening calls made between 2310 hrs and 2336 hrs on April 12, 2014 on his home mobile number. The mobile number used to make threatening calls 0333-1212346 was also given to the FIA with all relevant details.
Identifying and tracing any person using a cell number is quite easy and now it is up to the FIA to investigate, arrest all criminals and also inform the general public about the matter as some circles also insist that all these attempts to harass journalists could also be a move to malign and defame the institution of the Pak Army by some vested interests.
It should be noted that Noorani received threatening calls a day after Editor Investigations of The News Ansar Abbasi received a threatening email. Ansar complained to the FIA immediately but no official of the agency contacted the senior journalist despite the passage of almost 48 hours.