Man burnt to death by friends over drugs issue

Police have claimed that friends, not muggers, were behind the incident in which a man had been burnt to death near the Lyari Expressway late on Monday night.

Shahzad Anis, 24, had been brought to the burns ward of the Dr Ruth KM Pfau Civil Hospital Karachi with burn injuries from the Sher Shah area.

Initially, it was reported that the man had been set on fire by robbers over resistance, but the police found during their investigation that the victim had been set on fire by his friends over a drugs issue, all of whom were believed to be drug addicts.

Police said the victim was a resident of the Bihar Colony area of the Lyari neighbourhood. According to their preliminary investigation, the victim’s friends set him on fire with a lighter and escaped. Police said his family had refused to lodge a case, but they were looking for the suspects.