Suspect in top prison official’s murder is detained by Kashmir police

• Killing has been attributed to People’s Anti-Fascist Front.
• Police say Yasir Ahmad, Lohia’s domestic helper, detained following “a big manhunt”.
• The police deny that the murder had any terrorist undertones.

Police in Kashmir, which is governed by India, claim to have detained the prime suspect in the killing of the top prison official in the area.

Hemant Kumar Lohia, 57, was found dead at his friend’s house in Jammu, in the southern region of Indian-administered Kashmir, on Monday night in mysterious circumstances.

The police said in a tweet on Tuesday that they had detained Yasir Ahmad, Lohia’s domestic helper, as a suspect following “a big manhunt.” Ahmad is 23 years old.

The police tweet further stated that “interrogation of the accused has begun.”

The killing has been attributed to the People’s Anti-Fascist Front (PAFF), which police claim is a branch of the Jaish-e-Muhammad armed organization with a base in Pakistan.

In a post on social media, the PAFF stated that “our special squad carried out an intelligence-based operation in Udaiwala in Jammu.” The start of such high-profile operations is only now.

Al Jazeera was unable to independently confirm the PAFF statement’s veracity. The authorities have yet to verify Ahmad’s connections to the insurgent group.

However, the police denied that the murder had any terrorist undertones. The police claimed in a statement that “no terror act is visible as per early assessment but complete probe is on to rule out any possibilities.”

The domestic helper may have had mental health issues, according to some records, according to the police who stated the weapon used to slit Lohia’s throat has been recovered.

They claimed that “initial investigations show that he (Ahmad) was quite hostile in his behavior and was also suffering from depression.”

According to the police statement, security camera footage retrieved from the crime scene showed the suspect leaving the house shortly after Lohia was killed.

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