Two butchers were shot dead when they resisted a robbery bid in North Nazimabad on Sunday afternoon.
Mohammad Danish and Mohammad Saleem were working at their shop near Tanveer Poultry Farm in the Taimuria Police remit when the incident happened, said Station House Officer (SHO) Asif Munawar of Taimuria Police Station.
He said the butchers, both residents of Muslim Town, attempted to overcome two robbers when the latter came and started looting the shop. On being confronted, the suspects opened fire on them and fled.
Acting on information, police rushed to the spot and found the two men lying injured. The injured were taken to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital, where they expired during the treatment. The deceased suffered bullet wounds to their torsos. The police found spent bullet shells at the scene of the crime and sent them to the forensic division of the Sindh police for examination.
They are also checking to see if CCTV footage was available to identify the culprits. However, a case has been reported and an investigation is under way.
Muggings on the rise
Robbery and mugging incidents are on the rise in the city, with the police appearing to be helpless to address the menace. On May 6, two men were gunned down and a teenage boy was wounded in two muggings reported in the metropolis.
Tariq Mehmood, 28, was shot dead in the Surjani Town police jurisdiction. The incident took place on Sunday morning near MD Cut, Northern Bypass, Surjani Town.
SHO Abbas Cheema said that acting on information received, they rushed to the spot where they found a man lying critically wounded inside a pickup. They took the injured to the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries during treatment.
Police found out that Mehmood was a driver for a private company. On Sunday morning he was driving to a warehouse with a colleague when hitherto unidentified suspects attempted to rob him, and shot him when he resisted the bid. He suffered a single bullet to the upper torso.
SHO Cheema claimed that the suspects had not robbed Mehmood or his colleague of anything, making the case more confusing. However, he added, the investigation is still in the initial stage. Mehmood hailed from Punjab’s Rahim Yar Khan. He was married and resided in Azeem Goth, Gulshan, Karachi.
In a separate incident, a hitherto unidentified man was shot dead while a teenage boy, identified as 14-year-old Mohammad Bilal, was injured in the SITE Super Highway police jurisdiction. The incident took place on Sunday morning in Janghar Goth, Sohrab Goth.
SHO Malik Mazhar said that acting on information received, they rushed to the spot where they found two persons lying injured. They were taken to a hospital, where the unidentified man died during treatment. Police found out that Bilal and his father Akram were on their way home when two men on a motorbike stopped them to started robbing them.
A passer-by attempted to overpower the suspects. During the scuffle, the suspects opened fire and injured the unidentified man and Bilal. The SHO said the identity of the deceased is yet to be ascertained.
On the night of May 5, a bandit identified as Shiraz Azhar committed suicide near Jauhar Chowrangi in Gulistan-e-Jauhar. SHO Syed Ali Hassan said Azhar had robbed a citizen who had withdrawn cash from an ATM. The accused was carrying a dagger with him.
As Azhar was trying to escape, the victim shouted for help. Hearing his cries, a number of people chased the accused, caught him and beat him up. During the struggle, Azhar stabbed his stomach with the dagger to kill himself. Police later took the injured robber to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, where he succumbed to his injuries during treatment on Sunday morning. SHO Hassan said the man was a habitual criminal and a number of complaints were lodged against him at the Sharea Faisal police station.