Woman driver who crushed two in Karachi traffic accident flees abroad after paying blood money

Rating Justification

The iVerify Pakistan team has reviewed this content and determined that it is false.

To reach this conclusion the iVerify Pakistan team corroborated the claim with news reports and coverage from mainstream media outlets.

Multiple social media users were sharing posts on social media platform X on August 20, 2024, claiming that the woman accused of driving a vehicle that killed two people in a road accident at Karachi’s Karsaz had fled abroad after paying blood money. However, the driver is still in Karachi and remanded to judicial custody.

The accident occurred on August 19 on Karsaz Road when a speeding SUV driven by the woman killed two people and injured three others. The woman, driving a Toyota Land Cruiser, allegedly hit multiple motorcycles before overturning after colliding with a parked car. Two of the injured victims later died at Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC). The police registered a case against the woman on murder charges and arrested her.

A court granted the police one-day custody of the suspect on August 20, who was then admitted to JPMC’s psychiatry department for treatment. The police emphasised all throughout that they were following legal procedures and that no one was above the law.

HOW IT STARTED

On August 20, a user, who appeared to be a PTI supporter according to her past posts, shared a post on social media platform X with the caption: “Congratulations Pakistanis, Natasha Begum, wife of Danish Iqbal, has reached Dubai after crushing five people, including a father and daughter. It is heard that Rs20 million have been given to the heirs of the deceased and Rs5m to the injured.”

Iqbal is currently serving as the chairman of Gul Ahmed Energy and its subsidiaries and Metro Power Group.

The post gained over 108,000 views and was reshared 1,400 times.

The same claim with a similar caption about the blood money allegation was shared by another PTI supporter who said: “It’s utterly shameful that a country’s justice system can be bought and sold to the highest bidder and is bought by the elite, leaving the poor to suffer at the hands of injustice. There is no law for rich people”

The post amassed over 3,200 views.

Multiple other users also shared the same allegation as can be seen by similar posts here and here.

METHODOLOGY

A fact check was initiated to verify the claim due to its high virality and significant public interest as well as anger over the deaths in the tragedy.

Conducting a review of August 20 news stories from leading English media outlets Dawn.com and Geo News to corroborate the alleged development showed that the driver involved in the accident was receiving treatment at JPMC.

According to the reports, a local court sent the woman on a one-day physical remand and ordered that she be produced on August 21 with a proper medical report.

On August 21, DawnNewsTV aired footage and reported that the suspect was brought to court and sent to jail on judicial remand. Geo News also reported the same.

FACT-CHECK STATUS: FALSE

The claim regarding the woman driver involved in the Karachi traffic accident fleeing abroad after paying blood money is false.

Footage aired on August 21 by the media showed her being brought to a court and subsequently being sent on judicial remand, proving that the driver was still in Pakistan and had not fled abroad.

Evidence and References

August 20, 2024, Dawn news story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1853528

August 20, 2024, Geo News report:
https://www.geo.tv/latest/560079-woman-booked-after-speeding-kills-2-injures-5-on-karsaz-road

August 21, 2024, DawnNewsTV video of woman driver being brought to court:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-41LSyOdIHg