Lahore:
Pakistani police say their investigation into an American's fatal shooting of two Pakistanis in January has found that the man did not act in self-defense.
Lahore police chief Aslam Tareen says that Raymond Davis carried out "an intentional and cold-blooded murder." The U.S. insists he has diplomatic immunity from any charge.
Davis' arrest has strained U.S.-Pakistan relations.
Washington insists Davis shot two Pakistanis dead because they were trying to rob him.
A Pakistani judge ordered the American remain in custody for 14 more days and also told the government it must clarify whether the man has diplomatic immunity.
The ongoing detention of the man, identified by Pakistanis as Raymond Allen Davis, is seriously straining the relationship between the U.S. and Pakistan, whose counter-terrorism alliance is considered key to ending the war in Afghanistan.
The U.S. says the American, a former U.S. Army Special Forces soldier, shot the two Pakistanis in self-defense because they were trying to rob him in the eastern city of Lahore.
Washington insists his detention is illegal under international agreements covering diplomats because he was a U.S. Embassy staffer.
The U.S. has already begun to curb diplomatic contacts and threatened to withdraw aid to Pakistan if Davis is not quickly freed, and Friday's decision to keep him detained is unlikely to please many in Washington.
However, the judge's agreement with the defense motion that the government must clarify whether Davis has immunity could give American officials some room to maneuver with their Pakistani counterparts.
Pakistani leaders -- loathe to incur a backlash in a public already rife with anti-U.S. sentiment -- have for weeks avoided making definitive statements on Davis' legal status, instead saying the issue is up to the courts. The fact that rival political parties control the federal government and the government of Punjab province, where any trial would be held, is further complicating the Pakistani response.
Davis faces potential murder charges. He is to be held in a jail in the Kot Lakhpat area of Lahore, the city where the shootings occurred on Jan. 27, said Abdus Samad, a government prosecutor in the case who briefed reporters after the session, which was closed to media.
Davis' next court appearance is set for Feb. 25. Samad said that Judge Anik Anwar also agreed to get government response on a defense request that any trial in the case be held out of public view.
Exactly what sort of work Davis does for the U.S. is a major issue because it could affect Pakistani determinations about his diplomatic immunity.
U.S. officials, who could not immediately be reached for comment Friday, will say only that he was an American Embassy employee who was considered part of the "administrative and technical staff." That designation gives him blanket immunity, the U.S. says.
There has also been controversy in Pakistan over the fact that Davis was armed. A senior U.S. official has told The Associated Press that Davis was authorized by the United States to carry a weapon, but that it was a "gray area" whether Pakistani law permitted him to do so.
Long before Davis emerged on the public consciousness, conspiracy theories about armed American mercenaries roaming the country were common among the population and sections of the media here.
According to records from the Pentagon, the 36-year-old Davis is a former Special Forces soldier who left the army in August 2003 after 10 years of service. A Virginia native, he served with infantry divisions prior to joining the 3rd Special Forces Group in Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
In 1994, he was part of the U.N. peacekeeping force in Macedonia. His record includes several awards and medals, including for good conduct.
Public records also show Davis runs a company with his wife registered in Las Vegas called Hyperion Protective Services, though it was not immediately clear whether the company has had many contracts with the U.S. government.
The U.S. Embassy says he has a diplomatic passport and a visa valid through June 2012. It also said in a recent statement that the U.S. had notified the Pakistani government of Davis' assignment more than a year ago.
After the shootings in Lahore on Jan. 27, Davis called for backup. The American car rushing to the scene hit a third Pakistani, a bystander, who later died. The U.S. has said nothing about the Americans involved in that third death, though Pakistani police have said they want to question them as well.