Sindh’s top cop concerned over murders in snatching incidents

By Salis bin Perwaiz
December 01, 2022

Sindh police chief Ghulam Nabi Memon held a meeting at the Karachi Police Office on Wednesday to review the overall police measures related to crime prevention, including the city’s law and order situation. He expressed concerns over the investigations into street crime cases, especially murders in snatching incidents.

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Officials said that while reviewing the progress report of police action and arrests against the drug and Gutka-Mawa mafia, IGP Memon ordered expediting the operations against the people involved in the sale and purchase of drugs and Gutka-Mawa, including their operatives and patrons.

He also ordered using effective strategy and action as well as employing modern techniques to ensure the arrest of the people involved in the killing of the city’s residents during robberies. He directed his subordinates to appoint separate officers for every investigation at each police station, saying that investigating officers for robbery murders, narcotics and Gutka-Mawa cases will be investigated by separate officers.

He explained that they would only investigate their given cases, and would not be assigned other investigations at their respective police stations, while they would also not be reassigned to another case or transferred from the police station.

He said the IOs should upload the case files and data of fugitives on the modern Police Stations Record Management System in the police stations in a timely manner to make the record sorting process helpful and effective. He added that it is important that the identity card and photograph of the arrested is uploaded.

Officials said the meeting was also briefed about the importance and usefulness of body cameras for police officers and personnel. Karachi police chief Jawed Alam Odho said that 768 body cameras were at the disposal of the city police and the traffic police.

He said that 20,000 private CCTV cameras installed at various locations have been linked to the police system as part of the civic monitoring process, while all the police stations in the city are being monitored through e-tagging of the CCTV cameras, the aim of which is to further improve the policing process.

He also said that under the IGP’s vision, innovation is being brought to policing in the city. Modern techniques are being introduced not only in operational but also in investigation matters, he added.

Covering the details of the security plan arranged for the upcoming local government elections in the city, the IGP ordered taking all the stakeholders into confidence by scheduling meetings with them to note their suggestions.

He stressed that the implementation of the security plan prepared for the LG polls to be held in Hyderabad should also be made extraordinary at all levels.

He said that the responsibilities of the officers and personnel who complete the body camera training in the field are very important. Thanks to this very important initiative, the officers and personnel will be able to ensure concrete police action on crime-related incidents and traffic violations, he added. The meeting was also attended by the AddlIGP Special Branch, the DIGs Admin and CIA, the Range DIGs, the AIGs of Operations Sindh, Admin and all districts, and the Investigation SSPs of Karachi.

Impersonations

A message from the District South police for public awareness and the safety of the residents of the city has been circulating on different social media platforms.

Officials said that according to the message, criminal elements in society have been using the name of the police to achieve their nefarious objectives and have been fraudulently collecting money from the city’s residents. The message said that in some incidents the criminal elements noted the details of the youth on social media and then called their heirs impersonating as police officers.

The criminals then say that their family member has been arrested by the police for a crime, so if they do not want an FIR to be lodged, they should send some money, the message pointed out. The South police said that many people have fallen victim to this campaign of deception.

They said that if anyone receives such a phone call, they should not worry, and instead, first confirm the matter by phoning the person who is said to have been arrested, then reach the police station mentioned to further confirm the matter.

No officer or personnel of the District South police is part of any such heinous act, and being a part of a responsible institution, the District South police strongly condemns such incidents, assuring that strict legal action will be taken against the criminal elements involved in these incidents, the message concluded.

Smuggled goods

Syed Irfan Ali, a spokesman for the Pakistan Customs, said personnel of the Collectorate of Customs Enforcement’s Anti-Smuggling Team, Karachi, conducted an operation in the wee hours of Wednesday in the Boulton Market area and seized smuggled items, including cigarettes, Indian-origin Gutka and flavoured tobacco, in a huge quantity, which was worth Rs40 million.

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