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CHITRAL: Pakistan detained an American armed with a 40-inch sword, a pistol and night vision goggles for allegedly trying to sneak into Afghanistan to hunt and kill al-Qaida head Osama bin Laden, police said on Tuesday.
Californian Gary Faulkner, 40, was caught in the Brumboret Valley near the Afghan border, Chitral police chief Jaffer Khan said. “He was roaming in a security zone in a suspicious manner. He had a dagger and night vision goggles with him. He is being investigated,” he said.
Mumtaz Ahmed, a senior police investigator, said Faulkner was also carrying a pistol and was hunting bin Laden because he suffered personal losses in the 9/11 attacks.
Ahmed said Faulkner was also carrying a book containing Christian verses and teachings. When asked why he thought he had a chance of tracing bin Laden, Faulkner replied, “God is with me, and I am confident I will be successful in killing him,” said Ahmed.
The Dawn said Faulkner acknowledged that he wanted to “decapitate Osama bin Laden”. If confirmed, this would mark one of the first instances of an American entering Pakistan and Afghanistan on his own to fight against militants.
Faulkner arrived in Brumboret on June 3 and stayed in a hotel there. He was assigned a police guard, as is quite common for foreigners visiting remote parts of Pakistan. When he checked out without informing police, officers began hunting for him, said Khan.
Californian Gary Faulkner, 40, was caught in the Brumboret Valley near the Afghan border, Chitral police chief Jaffer Khan said. “He was roaming in a security zone in a suspicious manner. He had a dagger and night vision goggles with him. He is being investigated,” he said.
Mumtaz Ahmed, a senior police investigator, said Faulkner was also carrying a pistol and was hunting bin Laden because he suffered personal losses in the 9/11 attacks.
Ahmed said Faulkner was also carrying a book containing Christian verses and teachings. When asked why he thought he had a chance of tracing bin Laden, Faulkner replied, “God is with me, and I am confident I will be successful in killing him,” said Ahmed.
The Dawn said Faulkner acknowledged that he wanted to “decapitate Osama bin Laden”. If confirmed, this would mark one of the first instances of an American entering Pakistan and Afghanistan on his own to fight against militants.
Faulkner arrived in Brumboret on June 3 and stayed in a hotel there. He was assigned a police guard, as is quite common for foreigners visiting remote parts of Pakistan. When he checked out without informing police, officers began hunting for him, said Khan.
