PESHAWAR: A man impersonating the son of the federal petroleum minister recently tricked the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Oil and Gas Company Limited into giving him a government vehicle, which killed a motorcyclist in a hit-and-run accident in Mansehra district, the relevant officials said.

The suspect, Mohammad Bilal, a resident of Oghi area of Mansehra district, was taken into custody on June 30 by the Mardan police along with PML-N leader from Khyber Agency Iqtidar Afridi after seizure of liquor, drugs and weapons.

The officials told Dawn that the suspect first introduced himself to the police as the son of petroleum and natural resources minister Shahid Khagan Abbasi but later admit-ted impersonation.

They added that the investigations revealed that the impersonator was not only involved in a hit-and-run incident but was also wanted by the Mansehra police in 10 cases, including those about kidnapping and KPOGCL fraud.

The officials said the KPOGCL provided him with a luxury vehicle with the registration number of Peshawar AB-1186 along with a guard after he introduced himself as the son of minister Khagan Abbasi and an investor.

They insisted that the company favoured the suspect in a bid to please the federal minister though without verifying his identity.

The excise and taxation department records show the energy and power department owns the car, black Toyota Hilux vehicle of 2016 model, which had killed a motorcyclist in Oghi tehsil on June 26 and injured his fellow.

Oghi police station SHO Wajid Ali told Dawn that the suspected impersonator abandoned the vehicle after the accident and fled.

Interestingly, the investigation led thepolice to the offices of the provincial government-owned company, which had no idea of the person it had provided the vehicle.

The official said the police would have faced immense problem in identifying the hit-and-run incident suspects had Mohammad Bilal not been caught by the Mardan police.

When contacted, Mardan district police officer Dr Mian Saeed said the suspect had defrauded the people for three years and that FIRs were registered against him in Mansehra.

He said the KPOGCL officials had also contacted the police after the suspect`s arrest.

`We will also inform the Mansehra police about the arrest,` he said.

However, DPO Saeed denied Mansehra`s police claim of getting two days custody of the accused from Mardan police for interrogation.

When contacted, KPOGCL chief executive officer Mohammad Raziuddin acknowledged providing the impersonator with a government vehicle.

He said Mohammad Bilal had approachedthe company with a business proposal of the establishment of petrol pumps for the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor project.

He said the suspect was knowledgeable and had a well-connected person and therefore, the company considering him as an investor tried to facilitate him and provided him with a vehicle.

`It is our job to facilitate investors. We provide guards and vehicles to prospective investors,` he said.

Mr. Raziuddin said the government guard was also provided to a person when he received an official vehicle.

He however denied that the company footed the hotel bills of the suspect for around two months.

The KPOGCL chief said he knew that the federal petroleum minister had a son, Nadir Abbasi, who the suspect impersonated.

He said that later he tried contacting minister Abbasi of fice to know the facts and was scheduled to meet him after the Eid holidays but by then, the suspect was caught.

A Mansehra police official said the accused often impersonated the son of senior PMLN leader and former KP governor Sardar Mehtab Ahmed Khan.