KABUL: United States has confirmed that Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) second-in-command Latif Mehsud has been taken into custody in Afghanistan.

Earlier, Afghan authorities revealed that TTP’s Latifullah Mehsud was in the custody of US troops, who apprehended him a week earlier.

Latif Mehsud was arrested by American forces as he was driving along a main highway in eastern Logar province’s district of Mohammad Agha, said the Logar governor, Arsallah Jamal. The road links the province with the Afghan capital, Kabul.

Mehsud has served as a senior deputy to Pakistani Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud.

According to foreign news agencies the TTP confirmed the capture, but claimed Mehsud was seized by the Afghan army at the Ghulam Khan border crossing in the eastern province of Khost on Oct. 5.

US State Department confirmed his arrest but did not share any other details with the media.

The Pakistani intelligence officials said American forces seized Mehsud while he was with the Afghan army, and that they no longer know where he is.

Mehsud, believed to be around 30 years-old, once served as Hakimullah Mehsud’s driver but eventually worked his way up the ranks to become a trusted deputy. The two are not related and Mehsud is a common name in the region.