US diplomat detained after his car injures two bikers

islamabad — Police on Monday said an American diplomat was detained after his car hit and injured the motorcyclist, Nazakat Islam, and his pillion passenger.

Police said the diplomat, Chad Rex Ausburn, was driving a Toyota Jeep on the Constitution Avenue at Secretariat Chowk around 9.40pm on Sunday when he struck two motorcyclists who were rushed to a hospital.

Police officer Najeeb-ur-Rehman told the media that the injured were in stable condition.

He said the driver was taken to a police station and would be released after the Foreign Ministry confirms his diplomatic status.

Islam and his companion Mohammad Waseem had suffered minor injuries in the accident and were taken to a nearby hospital where they were discharged later.

On Monday, a first information report (FIR) was lodged in the Secretariat police station against Islam with assistant sub-inspector (ASI) Mohammad Yousuf as the complainant. According to the report, the accident was a result of Islam’s “negligence and recklessness”. Nazakat has been charged with rash driving or riding on a public way.

Another case was lodged in the same police station against the chief security officer of the US embassy in Islamabad, Taimoor Pirzada, for misbehaving with police following the crash between the US diplomat’s vehicle and the motorcycle.

The FIR claimed that Pirzada attacked and misbehaved with the Station House Officer Abdul Sattar — who is the complainant — and tried to stop police from shifting the car and its driver involved in the accident to the station.

Pirzada was charged and arrested for assaulting and using force to deter public servant from discharging his duty and obstructing him from performing his public functions.

The embassy spokesman offered no comment.

It is the second time that United States diplomats were involved in a road accident in Islamabad.

A vehicle driven by Colonel Joseph Emanuel Hall, Defence and Air Attache of the United States embassy, crushed to death a Pakistani motorcyclist in Islamabad on April 7.

The Islamabad High Court has instructed the government not to allow the diplomat to leave the country until his case is decided by the court.