Raymond Allen Davis is a former
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
soldier,
private security firm employee, and contractor with the
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...
(CIA).
On January 27, 2011, Davis shot two men in the back, killing both, in
Lahore
Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...
,
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
. At least one of the men was armed. Immediately after the shooting, a car coming to aid Davis killed a third Pakistani man, Ibadur Rahman, in a
hit and run
In traffic laws, a hit and run or a hit-and-run is the act of causing a traffic collision and not stopping afterwards. It is considered a supplemental crime in most jurisdictions.
Additional obligation
In many jurisdictions, there may be an ...
while speeding on the wrong side of the road. In the aftermath of the incident, the
U.S. government contended that Davis was protected by
diplomatic immunity
Diplomatic immunity is a principle of international law by which certain foreign government officials are recognized as having legal immunity from the jurisdiction of another country. because of his employment with the
American consulate in Lahore. However, he was jailed and criminally charged by Pakistani authorities with two counts of murder and the
illegal possession of a firearm
Criminal possession of a weapon is the unlawful possession of a weapon by an individual.
Many societies both past and present have placed restrictions on what forms of weaponry private citizens (and to a lesser extent police) are allowed to pur ...
.
On March 16, 2011, Davis was released after the families of the two killed men were paid in ''
diyya'' (a form of
blood money compensation in
Islamic law
Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam and is based on the sacred scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran and the ...
). Judges then acquitted him on all charges, and Davis immediately left Pakistan.
The incident led to a diplomatic furor and deterioration in
Pakistan–United States relations
On 15 August 1947, one day after the independence of Pakistan through the partition of British India, the United States became one of the first nations to establish relations with Pakistan. The relations are a very important factor in the United ...
. A major focus of the incident was the U.S. government's assertion that Davis was protected under the principle of diplomatic immunity due to his role as an "administrative and technical official" attached to the American consulate in Lahore.
The
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
claimed that Davis was protected under the
Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations
The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961 is an international treaty that defines a framework for diplomatic relations between independent countries. Its aim is to facilitate "the development of friendly relations" among governments ...
and demanded he be released from custody immediately.
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
, then-
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
, asked Pakistan not to prosecute Davis and recognize him as a diplomat, stating, "There's a broader principle at stake that I think we have to uphold."
Pakistani officials disputed the claim of immunity from a murder charge, asserting that Davis was involved in
clandestine operations
A clandestine operation is an intelligence or military operation carried out in such a way that the operation goes unnoticed by the general population or specific enemy forces.
Until the 1970s, clandestine operations were primarily political in ...
, and questioned the scope of his activities in Pakistan.
The
Pakistani Foreign Ministry stated that "this matter is ''
sub judice
In law, ''sub judice'', Latin for "under a judge", means that a particular case or matter is under trial or being considered by a judge or court. The term may be used synonymously with "the present case" or "the case at bar" by some lawyers.
I ...
''
under adjudication"in a court of law and the legal process should be respected."
Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi
Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Hussain Qureshi ( ur, ; born 22 June 1956) is a Pakistani politician who served as the 29th Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2018 to 2022. He previously held the post from 2008 to 2011. He has been a member of the Nationa ...
stated that, according to official records and experts in the Foreign Office, Davis was "not a diplomat and cannot be given blanket diplomatic immunity"; Qureshi's stand on the issue allegedly led to him losing the Foreign Affairs ministerial post.
The aftermath of the shooting led to widespread protests in Pakistan demanding action against Davis.
Almost a month after the incident, U.S. officials revealed Davis was a contractor for the CIA after it was reported in ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
''.
According to
''The Telegraph'', he was the acting CIA
Station Chief
A station chief is a government official who is the head of a team, post or function usually in a foreign country. Historically it commonly referred to the head of a defensible structure such as an ambassador's residence or colonial outpost. In G ...
in Pakistan.
An unnamed official with Pakistan's
Inter-Services Intelligence
The Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI; ur, , bayn khadamatiy mukhabarati) is the premier intelligence agency of Pakistan. It is responsible for gathering, processing, and analyzing any information from around the world that is deemed relevant ...
(ISI) stated that Davis had contacts in the
Federally Administered Tribal Areas
, conventional_long_name = Federally Administered Tribal Areas
, nation = Pakistan
, subdivision = Autonomous territory
, image_flag = Flag of FATA.svg
, image_coat = File:Coat of arms ...
along the
Afghanistan–Pakistan border and knew both of the men that he had shot. He stated that the ISI would investigate the possibility that the encounter on the streets of Lahore stemmed from a meeting or from threats to Davis. Some media outlets have suggested, according to anonymous sources, that data retrieved from Davis's phones and
GPS
The Global Positioning System (GPS), originally Navstar GPS, is a Radionavigation-satellite service, satellite-based radionavigation system owned by the United States government and operated by the United States Space Force. It is one of t ...
device indicated that he had been to
Islamabad
Islamabad (; ur, , ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's ninth-most populous city, with a population of over 1.2 million people, and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital T ...
, Lahore,
Peshawar
Peshawar (; ps, پېښور ; hnd, ; ; ur, ) is the sixth most populous city in Pakistan, with a population of over 2.3 million. It is situated in the north-west of the country, close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is ...
and some areas in the tribal belt of the country that have been the subject of
U.S. drone attacks.
These attacks were interrupted for several weeks after Davis's arrest
before resuming on March 18, 2011, in a
strike at Datta Khel.
Incident
Davis indicated in his written statement that the incident happened when he was coming from the consulate, although the report from Pakistani police stated that the GPS record showed he was coming from his private residence at Scotch Corner, Upper Mall.
Davis stated that after withdrawing cash from a
bank cash machine, he was driving alone in his white
Honda Civic
The is a series of automobiles manufactured by Honda since 1972. Since 2000, the Civic has been categorized as a compact car, while previously it occupied the subcompact class. , the Civic is positioned between the Honda Fit/City and Honda Acc ...
and had stopped at a
traffic light
Traffic lights, traffic signals, or stoplights – known also as robots in South Africa are signalling devices positioned at intersection (road), road intersections, pedestrian crossings, and other locations in order to control flows of traf ...
near Qurtaba Chowk in the
Mozang Chungi Mozang Chungi or Mozang is an area in Lahore, Pakistan. Nearby areas are Jail Road, Choubarji, Shama and famous Anarkali Bazar. It is located at 31°32'55N 74°18'54E. The area came under attention after the controversial Raymond Allen Davis inciden ...
area of Lahore when two men pulled alongside him on a motorbike.
After one of the young men allegedly brandished a pistol, Davis opened fire and killed both of them with his own 9mm
Glock pistol
Glock is a brand of polymer- framed, short recoil-operated, locked-breech semi-automatic pistols designed and produced by Austrian manufacturer Glock Ges.m.b.H. The firearm entered Austrian military and police service by 1982 after it was th ...
.
The two men were identified as Faizan Haider, 22 years old and Faheem Shamshad (also known as Muhammad Faheem), 26 years old. Davis told police that he acted in
self-defence
Self-defense (self-defence primarily in Commonwealth English) is a countermeasure that involves defending the health and well-being of oneself from harm. The use of the right of self-defense as a legal justification for the use of force in ...
. The police were unable to find any eyewitnesses to support Davis's contention that the deceased men brandished a weapon. Police confirmed that Faheem was carrying a pistol at the time of the shooting. According to the investigative officers, when Davis fired at Faizan and Faheem, they were sitting on their bike in front of his car with their backs towards Davis. Davis shot them through his windshield. After the shooting, Davis is alleged to have exited his car to take pictures and videos of the casualties with his cell phone.
There are additional reports that Davis shot five rounds through his windshield, got out of his vehicle and shot four more rounds into the two men as they lay on the pavement.
[Greg Miller and Karen DeYoung,]
U.S., Pakistani officials at diplomatic odds in fatal shooting
(February 9, 2011). ''The Washington Post''. The police report notes that both witnesses and Davis reported that Davis fired from behind Haider as Haider was running away.
Davis then radioed for backup. Minutes later, four men in a
Toyota Land Cruiser
The (also sometimes spelled as LandCruiser) is a series of four-wheel drive vehicles produced by the Japanese automobile manufacturer Toyota. It is Toyota's longest running series of models. , the sales of the Land Cruiser totalled more than ...
with fake registration plates made an unsuccessful attempt to reach the scene.
Stopped in a
traffic jam
Traffic congestion is a condition in transport that is characterized by slower speeds, longer trip times, and increased vehicular queueing. Traffic congestion on urban road networks has increased substantially since the 1950s. When traffic de ...
, the driver of the Land Cruiser jumped the
median
In statistics and probability theory, the median is the value separating the higher half from the lower half of a data sample, a population, or a probability distribution. For a data set, it may be thought of as "the middle" value. The basic fe ...
on Jail Road and traveled
against the oncoming traffic. The Land Cruiser
collided with a motorcyclist unconnected to the initial incident, later identified as Ebadur Rehman (also transliterated Ibad-ur-Rehman). Faizan Haider died at the scene, while both Faheem Shamshad and Ibad-ur-Rehman were taken to Services Hospital, Lahore and subsequently also died.
Security camera
A closed-circuit television camera can produce images or recordings for surveillance or other private purposes. Cameras can be either video cameras, or digital stills cameras. Walter Bruch was the inventor of the CCTV camera. The main purpose o ...
footage of the damaged vehicle after its fatal collision with Rehman were later shown on Pakistani
Geo TV
Geo Television Network is a television channel based in Pakistan. It was established in May 2002 and is owned by the Jang Media Group. The channel began its test transmission on 14 August 2002, with regular transmission beginning on 1 October 2 ...
. Pakistani official requested the U.S. to produce the men, who had come from the same suburban house where Davis lived and had the same diplomatic visas, for questioning, but the U.S. refused and the men left Pakistan.
After the accident, the
vehicle fled the scene and proceeded without stopping to the U.S. Consulate, jettisoning items outside
Faletti's Hotel. Police say they included four magazines containing 100 bullets, various battery cells, a baton, scissors, a pair of gloves, a compass with knife, a black colored mask/blindfold, and a piece of cloth bearing the American flag.
Davis also attempted to leave the scene in his vehicle, but he was apprehended by two
s at Old Anarkali Food Street in
Anarkali Bazaar
Anarkali Bazaar ( Punjabi, ur, ) is a major bazaar in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. Anarkali also serves as a neighbourhood and union council of Data Gunj Buksh Tehsil of Lahore. It is situated in the region that extends from the south of Lahor ...
and handed over to police.
According to news sources, items recovered from Davis's car included a Glock handgun, an
infrared
Infrared (IR), sometimes called infrared light, is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than those of visible light. It is therefore invisible to the human eye. IR is generally understood to encompass wavelengths from around ...
light, a portable telescope,
GPS
The Global Positioning System (GPS), originally Navstar GPS, is a Radionavigation-satellite service, satellite-based radionavigation system owned by the United States government and operated by the United States Space Force. It is one of t ...
equipment, two cellphones, a satellite phone, 9mm ammunition, multiple ATM and military ID cards, and a camera containing pictures of "prohibited areas such as installations along the border with
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
".
Pakistani media have also reported that Davis also carried multiple ATM and military ID cards and what was described as a facial disguise or makeup. The Pakistani official said Davis also carried identification cards from the U.S. consulates in Lahore and Peshawar but not from the
U.S. embassy in Islamabad.
Investigation
Police stated that the two men that were shot by Davis were carrying
sidearms but that no shots were fired from these weapons. It is disputed whether the firearms were licensed or not. A senior police officer has said that Haider had a criminal record and was previously involved in
dacoity
Dacoity is a term used for "banditry" in the Indian subcontinent. The spelling is the anglicised version of the Hindi word ''daaku''; "dacoit" is a colloquial Indian English word with this meaning and it appears in the ''Glossary of Colloquial ...
,
but neighbors, friends and family of the young men stated that they had no criminal records or history of illegal activity.
The police officer in charge of the investigation, Zulfiqar Hameed, was initially reported as having said that eyewitness testimony suggested that the men were trying to rob Davis.
Later press statements from the Lahore Police Chief, Aslam Tareen, explain that police rejected Davis's plea of self-defence precisely because of eyewitness statements. Tareen, describing the shooting as "a clear-cut murder," explained that the self-defence plea "had been considered but the eyewitnesses, the other witnesses and the forensic reports ... showed that it was not a case of self-defence."
The Toyota Land Cruiser that killed Rehman had the fake number plates LZN-6970. Investigations have revealed that the car number was actually registered in the name of Sufi Munawwar Hussain, a resident of Sahiwal district in
Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...
province. The men driving the car were allegedly heavily armed and came from Davis's suburban house, raising concerns amongst officials that they were also CIA. The men, who had the same diplomatic visas as Davis, left the country after the U.S. refused Pakistani requests to interview them.
After the incident multiple Pakistani officials told
ABC News
ABC News is the news division of the American broadcast network ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast ''ABC World News Tonight, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other programs include Breakfast television, morning ...
that both men Davis killed were working for
Inter-Services Intelligence
The Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI; ur, , bayn khadamatiy mukhabarati) is the premier intelligence agency of Pakistan. It is responsible for gathering, processing, and analyzing any information from around the world that is deemed relevant ...
and were following Davis because he was spying and had crossed a "red line". This was initially denied by U.S. officials.
''
The Express Tribune
''The Express Tribune'' is a daily English-language newspaper based in Pakistan. It is the flagship publication of the '' Daily Express'' media group. It is Pakistan's only internationally affiliated newspaper in a partnership with the ''Interna ...
'' also reported that the two dead motorcyclists were intelligence operatives, quoting a Pakistani security official who requested not to be identified since he was not authorized to speak to the media.
Pakistani officials alleged that Davis had travelled to the
Federally Administered Tribal Areas
, conventional_long_name = Federally Administered Tribal Areas
, nation = Pakistan
, subdivision = Autonomous territory
, image_flag = Flag of FATA.svg
, image_coat = File:Coat of arms ...
and met with some people without the approval of ISI and therefore was being followed in an attempt to intimidate him.
Davis alleged that the men he shot were trying to rob him but the police delayed registering cases against Haider and Shamshad.
Diplomatic status
The U.S. and Pakistani governments did not agree as to Davis's
legal status
Legal status is the status or position held by an entity as determined by the law. It includes or entails a set of privileges, obligations, powers or restrictions that a person or thing has as encompassed in or declared by legislation.
Jack Balki ...
in Pakistan at the time of his arrest. The
U.S. government claimed that Davis was a diplomat and should neither have been arrested nor should be prosecuted under
Pakistani law
The law of Pakistan is the law and legal system existing in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Pakistani law is based upon the legal system of British India; thus ultimately on the common law of England and Wales.
History
Following the establish ...
because he had
diplomatic immunity
Diplomatic immunity is a principle of international law by which certain foreign government officials are recognized as having legal immunity from the jurisdiction of another country. under the
Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations
The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961 is an international treaty that defines a framework for diplomatic relations between independent countries. Its aim is to facilitate "the development of friendly relations" among governments ...
. The
Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...
authorities (the province in which Davis was arrested) claimed that Davis was not on a diplomatic
visa
Visa most commonly refers to:
*Visa Inc., a US multinational financial and payment cards company
** Visa Debit card issued by the above company
** Visa Electron, a debit card
** Visa Plus, an interbank network
*Travel visa, a document that allows ...
but on an official business visa.
According to U.S. officials cited in ''The New York Times'', senior Pakistani officials "believed in private that Davis had diplomatic immunity but that the government was unwilling or unable to enforce the protocol".
After senior Pakistani official, Information Secretary of the PPP
Fauzia Wahab
Fauzia Wahab ( Urdu: فوزیہ وہاب; 14 November 1956 – 17 June 2012), was a Pakistani politician who served as the senior '' ex officio'' member and the secretary-general of the central executive committee of the Pakistan Peoples P ...
made statements reflecting her personal belief that Davis did have diplomatic immunity, she resigned her post rather than testify. A
contempt of court
Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful toward a court of law and its officers in the form of behavior that opposes or defies the authority, justice, and dignity of the cour ...
petition was filed against her in the
Lahore High Court
The Lahore High Court () is based in Lahore, Pakistan. It was established as a high court on 21 March 1882. The Lahore High Court has jurisdiction over Punjab (Pakistan). The High Court's principal seat is in Lahore, but there are benches in th ...
.
[Wahab quits as PPP information secretar]
Wahab quits as PPP information secretary – The Express Tribune
In two articles
appearing in the Pakistani newspaper ''
The Express Tribune
''The Express Tribune'' is a daily English-language newspaper based in Pakistan. It is the flagship publication of the '' Daily Express'' media group. It is Pakistan's only internationally affiliated newspaper in a partnership with the ''Interna ...
'', the precise status of Davis's and the American government's claim of immunity was examined by
Najmuddin Shaikh
Najmuddin Shaikh ( ur, نجم الدین شیخ) (born 4 September 1939) served as the Pakistani ambassador to United States (1990–1991) and later served as Foreign Secretary of Pakistan (1994 - 1997).
Education and family
He received his bac ...
, a former Pakistani diplomat. He wrote that the question of
diplomatic immunity
Diplomatic immunity is a principle of international law by which certain foreign government officials are recognized as having legal immunity from the jurisdiction of another country. depended on whether Davis was on the staff of the "consulate" or the "embassy" as the privileges and immunities of each are very different. Shaik wrote that if Davis was on the staff of the "embassy", the question of immunity would depend upon whether Davis was in Mozang Chowrangi in the "course of his duties" and questioned who should decide that.
Regarding the law concerning if Davis was on the "consular" staff, a practising lawyer in Islamabad, Mirza Shahzad Akbar, referred to the Vienna Convention of 1963 in ''
The News International
''The News International'', published in broadsheet size, is one of the largest English language newspapers in Pakistan. It is published daily from Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi/Islamabad. An overseas edition is published from London that cater ...
'', writing: "one needs to read Article 41 (1) which says: ''Consular officers shall not be liable to arrest or detention pending trial, except in the case of a grave crime and pursuant to a decision by the competent judicial authority''. Now having read the law, there should be no doubt in anyone's mind that if a member of US Consulate in Lahore kills someone, he is answerable to a court of law in that jurisdiction, as there is no other crime more heinous or more grave than murder." Pakistani investigators took the position that Davis did not shoot the two men acting in self-defence and the police recommended he face a charge of double murder.
Davis in the mobile phone video of his interrogation did not claim that he had a diplomatic rank, but rather that he was "doing consulting work for the Consul General, who is based at the US consulate in Lahore." In the video, Davis is heard and seen showing several ID badges around his neck, and states that one is from Islamabad, and one is from Lahore. He then adds, "I work as a consultant there".
According to ''
USA Today
''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...
'', "U.S. officials in Islamabad will say only that he was an American Embassy employee who was considered part of the 'administrative and technical staff'."
Ejaz Haider pointed to this difference, writing, "This has now been changed to this man being an employee of the US embassy. Why? Because, and this is important, there are two different Vienna Conventions, one on ''diplomatic'' relations (1961) and the other on ''consular'' relations (1963)."
Davis's background
United States Army records indicate that Davis is a native of
Wise, Virginia
Wise is a town in Wise County, Virginia, United States. The population was 3,286 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Wise County. It was originally incorporated as the town of Gladeville in 1874. The town's name was changed to Wise in ...
, and spent 10 years in the U.S. Army, being
discharged
Discharge may refer to
Expel or let go
* Discharge, the act of firing a gun
* Discharge, or termination of employment, the end of an employee's duration with an employer
* Military discharge, the release of a member of the armed forces from serv ...
in 2003. Davis served in
infantry
Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...
units. He received
basic training
Military recruit training, commonly known as basic training or boot camp, refers to the initial instruction of new military personnel. It is a physically and psychologically intensive process, which resocializes its subjects for the unique deman ...
at
Fort Benning
Fort Benning is a United States Army post near Columbus, Georgia, adjacent to the Alabama–Georgia border. Fort Benning supports more than 120,000 active-duty military, family members, reserve component soldiers, retirees and civilian employees ...
in
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
, served six months with the
United Nations peacekeeping force in Macedonia in 1994, and later joined the
Special Forces
Special forces and special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...
. Davis's final assignment with the army was weapons
sergeant
Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...
with the
Fort Bragg
Fort Bragg is a military installation of the United States Army in North Carolina, and is one of the largest military installations in the world by population, with around 54,000 military personnel. The military reservation is located within Cum ...
,
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
-based
3rd Special Forces Group.
After his military service, Davis was the operator of "Hyperion Protective Consultants, LLC" a company organized as an
LLC.
Varying reports indicate that the firm is based in either
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...
or
Orlando, Florida
Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...
.
The company's website was taken down after the incident, but before its removal the website described the firm as specializing in "
loss and risk management."
[Hyperion Protective Consultants, LLP]
(February 21, 2011). Overseas Civilian Contractors blog. According to the BBC, "the offices that the company says it had in Orlando have been vacant for several years and the numbers on its website are
unlisted."
Davis was also a CIA contractor as an employee of
Blackwater Worldwide
Blackwater was an American private military company founded on December 26, 1996 by former Navy SEAL officer Erik Prince. It was renamed Xe Services in 2009 and known as Academi since 2011 after it was acquired by a group of private investors. ...
(now Academi).
Davis's activities in Pakistan
It was reported in one of the Pakistani newspapers following his arrest, the police recovered photographs of sensitive areas and defence installations from Davis's camera, among which included snapshots of the
Bala Hisar Fort, the headquarters of the paramilitary Frontier Corps in
Peshawar
Peshawar (; ps, پېښور ; hnd, ; ; ur, ) is the sixth most populous city in Pakistan, with a population of over 2.3 million. It is situated in the north-west of the country, close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is ...
and of the Pakistani Army's bunkers on the Eastern border with
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. The
Government of Punjab considered Davis a security risk after the recovery of the photos.
Prosecutors also suggested that Davis be charged with espionage.
In particular Davis main espionage activities were against
Lashkar-e-Taiba
Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT; ur, ; literally ''Army of the Good'', translated as ''Army of the Righteous'', or ''Army of the Pure'' and alternatively spelled as ''Lashkar-e-Tayyiba'', ''Lashkar-e-Toiba'', ''Lashkar-i-Taiba'', ''Lashkar-i-Tayyeba'') ...
and Pakistan's
nuclear facilities
Nuclear may refer to:
Physics
Relating to the Atomic nucleus, nucleus of the atom:
*Nuclear engineering
*Nuclear physics
*Nuclear power
*Nuclear reactor
*Nuclear weapon
*Nuclear medicine
*Radiation therapy
*Nuclear warfare
Mathematics
*Nuclear ...
.
On February 28,
Dawn News
Dawn News is one of Pakistan's 24-hour Urdu news channel. Based in Karachi, the station is a subsidiary of Pakistan Herald Publications Limited (PHPL), Pakistan's largest English-language media group.
The test transmission of the station occu ...
reported that law enforcement agencies arrested 45 individuals in
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
for staying in constant contact with Davis. Other media reported at the same time that at least 30 suspected covert American operatives have suspended their activities in Pakistan and 12 have already left the country.
It is believed that Washington halted the
CIA drone attacks in the
Federally Administered Tribal Areas
, conventional_long_name = Federally Administered Tribal Areas
, nation = Pakistan
, subdivision = Autonomous territory
, image_flag = Flag of FATA.svg
, image_coat = File:Coat of arms ...
, which had been occurring at the average rate of two to three per week since 2008, after Raymond Davis was arrested to avoid further straining the tense situation. There were no reported drone attacks from January 23, four days before the Raymond Davis incident, until February 21.
Aftermath
The government of Pakistan was under extreme pressure from the United States to release Davis. News reports indicate that the
Pakistani Embassy in Washington was cut off from all communications with the
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other n ...
over this issue.
Diplomatic note
Diplomatic correspondence is correspondence between one state and another and is usually of a formal character. It follows several widely observed customs and style in composition, substance, presentation, and delivery and can generally be categor ...
s were sent by the U.S. Government to Pakistan's Foreign Office urging it to grant diplomatic immunity to Davis. A delegation of the
United States House Committee on Armed Services
The U.S. House Committee on Armed Services, commonly known as the House Armed Services Committee or HASC, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is responsible for funding and oversight of the Department of Defe ...
conveyed a veiled threat that Pakistan–US defense cooperation could be under cloud if the standoff persisted on the issue of immunity for Davis.
In another incident, ABC News reported that two Pakistani officials claimed that the Pakistani ambassador to the U.S.,
Husain Haqqani
Husain Haqqani (; born 1 July 1956, alternately spelled Hussain Haqqani) is a Pakistani journalist, academic, political activist, and former ambassador of Pakistan to Sri Lanka and the United States.
Haqqani has written four books on Pakistan, ...
, received threats from the
U.S. National Security Advisor Tom Donilon of being removed if action was not taken on the Davis case. Haqqani however categorically denied the allegation. According to the same report, Donilon also warned of U.S. consulates closing down in Pakistan and an upcoming visit by Zardari to Washington being rejected.
It was also reported that top Pakistani Foreign Office officials alleged Pakistan's president,
Asif Ali Zardari
Asif Ali Zardari ( ur, ; sd, ; born 26 July 1955) is a Pakistani politician who is the president of Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians and was the co-chairperson of Pakistan People's Party. He served as the 11th president of Pakistan ...
instructed the Foreign Office in categorical terms that Davis be given diplomatic immunity and for this purpose the Foreign Office should immediately issue a backdated letter notifying Davis as 'member of staff member of the
US embassy, in Islamabad.' Former foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi refused, saying: "on the basis of the official record and the advice given to me by the technocrats and experts of the Foreign Office, I could not certify him (Raymond Davis) as a diplomat. The kind of by blanket immunity Washington is pressing for Davis, is not endorsed by the official record of the Foreign Ministry." Qureshi reiterated this stance after a meeting with Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman
John Kerry
John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician and diplomat who currently serves as the first United States special presidential envoy for climate. A member of the Forbes family and the Democratic Party (Unite ...
on February 16. Qureshi said he kept quiet on the Davis case earlier upon instructions from the leadership of the
Pakistan People's Party
The Pakistan People's Party ( ur, , ; PPP) is a centre-left, social-democratic political party in Pakistan. It is currently the third largest party in the National Assembly and second largest in the Senate of Pakistan. The party was founded i ...
(PPP), but implied that his stance on the matter had cost him his job. As of February 16 a new foreign minister has not yet been appointed.
''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' reported that a number of U.S. media outlets learned about Davis's CIA role but "kept it under wraps at the request of the
Obama administration
Barack Obama's tenure as the 44th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2009, and ended on January 20, 2017. A Democrat from Illinois, Obama took office following a decisive victory over Republican ...
."
Colorado television station
KUSA Kusa or KUSA may refer to:
* Kusa, Russia, a town in Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia
* Kusa, Latvia, a village in Madona District, Latvia
* Kusa, Oklahoma, United States
* Kusa, indigenous name of Beles River (in Gumuz language)
* Kusa, Afghanistan
...
(9NEWS) learned that Davis worked for the CIA speaking to Davis's wife, who referred inquiries to a Washington, D.C. number for the CIA. The station then "removed the CIA reference from its website at the request of the U.S. government."
On February 6, Shamshad's widow, Shumaila Kanwal, committed suicide with an
overdose
A drug overdose (overdose or OD) is the ingestion or application of a drug or other substance in quantities much greater than are recommended. of pills, fearing that Davis would be released without trial, police and doctors said.
Release
Charges were dropped and Davis was released after payment to the families of the two people he had shot.
He was released under a principle of
Sharia
Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam and is based on the sacred scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran and the H ...
(Islamic law) that allows murder charges to be dismissed if
diyya is paid to the deceased's families (if and only if, they agreed without any pressure), an arrangement which is legal and common in Pakistan.
A senior Pakistani official stated that between $1.4 and $3 million was paid to families of the deceased. U.S. Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
stated that the U.S. government had not paid money for Davis to be released.
Davis was also fined
Rs20,000 by the judge for possessing illegal firearms.
[Davis buys his flight to freedom, By Wajih Ahmad Sheikh and Asif Chaudhry, Dawn News, March 17, 2011](_blank)
An attorney representing the families said that the Pakistani government paid the ''diyat'', but U.S. officials indicated that the U.S. government would reimburse Pakistani authorities. Asad Manzoor Butt, a lawyer who had been representing the deceased's relatives, told the media outside the jail that he had been detained for several hours by the prison administration and the heirs had been forced to sign the ''diyat'' papers.
After being released, Davis was flown to
Bagram Airfield
Bagram Airfield-BAF, also known as Bagram Air Base , is located southeast of Charikar in the Parwan Province of Afghanistan. It is under the Afghan Ministry of Defense. Sitting on the site of the ancient Bagram at an elevation of above sea leve ...
in Kabul aboard U.S. aircraft. He was accompanied on the flight by
Cameron Munter
Cameron Munter (born 1954) is a retired diplomat, academic, and executive who now works as a global consultant. He was President and CEO of the EastWest Institute (EWI) in New York from 2015 to 2019, directing conflict resolution projects in Rus ...
, the
U.S. ambassador to Pakistan. A senior U.S. official told ''The Washington Post'' that Davis was flown there because U.S. wanted Davis out of Pakistan as soon as possible and "it was the closest place" and stated that Davis was in "good spirits."
The Pakistani newspaper ''
The News International
''The News International'', published in broadsheet size, is one of the largest English language newspapers in Pakistan. It is published daily from Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi/Islamabad. An overseas edition is published from London that cater ...
'' stated that Davis left Lahore at 4:53 p.m. aboard the ''Viper 18'', a 12-seat
Cessna
Cessna () is an American brand of general aviation aircraft owned by Textron Aviation since 2014, headquartered in Wichita, Kansas. Originally, it was a brand of the Cessna Aircraft Company, an American general aviation aircraft manufacturing c ...
and claimed that there were "strong indications" that four family members of the Pakistani men (Imran Haider, brother of Faizan Haider, and Mohammad Waseem, brother of Mohammad Fahim, and two other family members) were on board the plane.
In December 2012 the ''
Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'' stated without more details that U.S. Senator John Kerry helped broker the release of Davis.
Events after release
There have been allegations of further repercussions stemming from the Davis incident. A petition has been filed in the Lahore High Court, alleging that family members of the two victims have gone missing.
Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman
Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman ( ur, مولانا فضلُرحمٰن; born 19 June 1953) is a Pakistani Islamic fundamentalist politician who is the president of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F). He is also the president of the Pakistan Democratic Movement ...
, a politician opposed to U.S. presence in Pakistan, has blamed the "Raymond Davis network" for a March 31, 2011 bomb attack targeting him. According to unnamed sources, Davis provided extensive information under interrogation on foreign spy networks in Pakistan, causing some foreign agents to flee the country. Overall, the Raymond Davis incident was detrimental to U.S.-Pakistani relations, possibly even leading to the cessation of all joint operations between Pakistan and the CIA.
On October 1, 2011,
Douglas County, Colorado
Douglas County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 357,978. The county seat is Castle Rock.
Douglas County is part of the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, Colorado, metropolitan statistica ...
, sheriff's deputies arrested Davis in Highlands Park, Colorado, at the Town Center in Highlands Ranch, for third-degree assault and disorderly conduct, both misdemeanors, stemming from a dispute between Davis and 50-year-old Jeff Maes about a parking space. Maes and his family got to a parking spot first and parked in it. A witness told police that Davis then confronted Maes and said, "I was waiting for that spot and it wasn't right for you to take it." When Maes refused to move, Davis struck Maes. The blow sent Maes to the ground. Davis was released on a $1,750 bail bond. When prosecutors later learned that Maes may have suffered a broken vertebra in the incident, they increased one of the charges against Davis to second-degree assault (a felony), a crime of violence that carries a five-year mandatory minimum, and Davis's bond was raised to $10,000. Neither Maes nor a third man present at the scene have been charged in the incident. Davis later pleaded guilty to misdemeanor third-degree assault and received a two-year probationary sentence.
In 2013, Raymond and his wife Rebecca divorced amicably, ending their marriage which began in 2004.
''The Contractor: How I Landed in a Pakistani Prison and Ignited a Diplomatic Crisis''
In June 2017, Davis launched his book titled ''The Contractor: How I Landed in a Pakistani Prison and Ignited a Diplomatic Crisis'', detailing his narration of the incident and the events which unfolded during his imprisonment in Pakistan.
In the book, Davis made several adversarial claims about the Pakistani government and military establishment's actions, and their involvement with respect to his case. He claimed that his release was finally facilitated following a secret meeting in
Oman
Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of t ...
between CIA chief
Leon Panetta
Leon Edward Panetta (born June 28, 1938) is an American Democratic Party politician who has served in several different public office positions, including Secretary of Defense, CIA Director, White House Chief of Staff, Director of the Office of ...
and ISI chief
Ahmad Shuja Pasha.
Pakistan's former interior minister
Rehman Malik
Abdul Rehman Malik NI (Punjabi, Urdu: رحمان ملک; born 12 December 1951 – 23 February 2022) was a Pakistani politician and a Federal Investigation Agency officer, having served as the Interior Minister from being appointed on 25 March ...
termed the book a "pack of lies" maligning Pakistan's government and military, denying allegations regarding the extent of Pasha's role, and accused Davis of ulterior motives.
An editorial in ''
Dawn
Dawn is the time that marks the beginning of twilight before sunrise. It is recognized by the appearance of indirect sunlight being scattered in Earth's atmosphere, when the centre of the Sun's disc has reached 18° below the observer's horizo ...
'' noted: "the book cannot be taken as a complete account of what occurred because some details will undoubtedly have been removed by US government censors who authorised the book's publication. But the book itself is a reminder of how opaque Pakistan-US security relations have been and perhaps continue to be." The editorial also noted that Davis' account of his exit suggested "a range of Pakistani officials bent over backwards to ensure his release" which appeared plausible in light of the U.S. government's public position. However, what could not be ascertained is "whether Pakistani military and government officials were arm-twisted and what were the parameters of the debate surrounding Mr Davis's possible release inside Pakistani policymaking circles."
See also
*
Pakistan–United States relations
On 15 August 1947, one day after the independence of Pakistan through the partition of British India, the United States became one of the first nations to establish relations with Pakistan. The relations are a very important factor in the United ...
References
External links
CIA operative in Lahore shooting – an interactive guidefrom ''The Guardian''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Raymond Allen
Living people
American diplomats
American expatriates in Pakistan
Diplomatic incidents
Pakistan–United States relations
People of the Central Intelligence Agency
People deported from Pakistan
Blackwater (company)
1974 births
People from Wise, Virginia
Diplomatic immunity and protection
CIA activities in Pakistan
United States Army soldiers