Karachi police have obtained detailed cryptocurrency trading records of Mir Raza Ali, the 25-year-old businessman and owner of the Wafflix dessert shop whose body was discovered with a gunshot wound in Gulistan-i-Jauhar on July 29. An anonymous police official confirmed that the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency secured a four-year record of Ali’s futures trading activity on the Binance platform.

The official stated that the records demonstrated Ali had engaged in futures trading for the past four years. Ali’s friend Abdul Hasem, who appeared before the judicial commission examining the case, said the two had previously traded cryptocurrency together. Hasem told the commission he stopped after incurring losses while Ali continued and performed well.

NCCIA Reviews Six Months of Transaction Data

Separately, the NCCIA has acquired six months of Binance and related cryptocurrency data connected to the investigation. Police sources indicated the material, spanning multiple pages of technical records, was submitted to the judicial commission in a format comparable to call detail records. Investigators have requested the agency to analyse the information and convert the Binance records into a clearer format, including daily transaction volumes over the six-month period.

Sources said the data typically arrives from overseas and is examined by NCCIA specialists in coding and forensics. Analysis focusing on the movement of funds through cryptocurrency wallets is expected within 24 to 36 hours, with a soft copy to be shared with relevant authorities. Transaction identifiers and hashes will allow investigators to follow corresponding entries on the public blockchain, establishing the origin of funds, subsequent transfers and recipient addresses.

Although cryptocurrency activity can offer anonymity, public blockchain records create a permanent trail that law enforcement can examine with specialised analytical tools.

Forensic Findings on Recovered Shell

A forensic examination by the Forensic Division Sindh determined that a 30-bore shell recovered at the scene where Ali’s body was found did not match the pistol carried by a security guard. The report, issued on August 10, compared the recovered cartridge with two test shells from pistol number LA-1197 registered under the Sindh Arms Act. Striker-pin and breech-face markings differed, ruling out a match.

A police spokesperson said the shell reached the laboratory on August 7 via police memo and the report was issued three days later. The spokesperson rejected suggestions of delayed submission or substitution, noting the report has formed part of the case file from the outset and was included in the initial supplementary charge sheet presented to the judicial commission. The laboratory also noted negligence by the relevant arms dealer and recommended legal action. Final verification of the shell awaits recovery of the pistol believed used in the incident.

Case Background and Post-Mortem Confirmation

Ali was reported missing on July 28 after an alleged kidnapping from PECHS. His body was found the following day in bushes near a wedding hall in Gulistan-i-Jauhar. Early police handling suggested the possibility of suicide, a theory the family rejected. A second post-mortem conducted after exhumation confirmed the death resulted from a gunshot wound.

The Sindh government formed a single-member judicial commission chaired by Sindh High Court Justice Omar Sial to examine the circumstances of the death and any investigative shortcomings. The commission has held multiple hearings. The family had sought a joint investigation team, but the Sindh High Court dismissed that petition, stating the decision to constitute such a body rests with the government.

Police reconstituted the investigation team, transferred the case to Zaman Town police station and added a murder charge to the original first information report that had listed kidnapping. The probe continues to draw on digital evidence, including the newly obtained cryptocurrency records.