Two citizens, three robbers killed in police encounters

Two more citizens lost their lives and one sustained severe injuries in an exchange of fire between the police and suspects in the Manghopir area on Thursday, while police arrested one suspect in an injured condition.

Separately, two suspected robbers were killed and a policeman wounded in separate encounters on Thursday night. In another encounter in the morning hours of Thursday, police claimed to have killed a robber who shot dead a youth in New Karachi on March 24.

Street crime has witnessed a rapid rise in Karachi, where 54 people have lost their lives to bullets fired by robbers this year.

On Thursday, near the Naya Nazimabad area an exchange of fire occurred between Shaheen Force cops and street criminals. During the shootout, one suspect was arrested in an injured condition, while two accomplices fled after intense firing.

The encounter resulted in two citizens losing their lives and one suffering severe injuries, who were taken to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital.

The arrested suspect, identified as Shahid, son of Mir Kalam. A weapon, two stolen mobile phones, and cash were also recovered from his possession.

The deceased were identified as Sain Dad and Shabbir, while injured as Ghulam Mushtaq, who was shifted from Abbasi Shaheed Hospital to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre.

Friends of the deceased and injured said that they were going to buy cigarettes and matches when they saw three suspects robbing people near Lal Gate, New Nazimabad. Citizens resisted, and Shaheen Force personnel arrived at the scene. The suspects fled while firing, and in response, the police also took action, arresting one dacoit in an injured condition.

SSP Abdul Hafeez Bugti stated that two citizens were killed and another was injured due to the firing by the robbers.

Sain Dad’s friend mentioned that the deceased’s father hailed from Umar Kot, and he got married just a month ago, and they all worked as labourers in the Korangi area. Separately, District Central police claimed to have killed two suspected robbers.

According to the Taimuria police, in an encounter in Sector 16A, the police killed two suspected dacoits. The suspects were identified as Faisal alias Bona and Naseer, son of Haneef. The police seized two .30 bore pistols and a motorcycle from the possession of the dead suspects.

One of the suspects was wearing an online food delivery company’s shirt. The police obtained the records of the suspects.

In an exchange of fire between dacoits and police near the Nursery Furniture Market on Sharea Faisal in the Ferozabad area, a police officer was injured, while the suspects managed to escape.

The injured police officer was identified as Imran, aged 45, and he sustained bullet wounds to both legs. He was transferred to a private hospital for medical treatment. The injured officer is posted to the SSU Headquarters and was returning home from work at the time of the incident.

Youth’s killer shot dead

The Zone West police on Thursday claimed to have killed a suspect allegedly involved in the last month killing of a young man in Bilal Colony for offering resistance during a mugging bid.

On March 24, a young man, Abdur Rehman, was killed when he resisted robbers in the New Karachi area within the limits of the Bilal Colony police station. Police on Thursday said the main suspect involved in his killing had been shot and killed by them during an encounter, and his accomplice arrested in an injured state.

West DIG Zone Irfan Ali Baloch briefed the media about the encounter at a press conference. District Central SSP Zeeshan Siddiqui, District West SSP Abdul Hafeez Bugti and Investigation SP Arab Maher were also present at the press conference.

DIG Baloch explained that on March 24, during a robbery at a foam shop in New Karachi’s Bilal Colony area, the suspects had killed Abdul Rahman when put up resistance.

Following the murder, teams were formed under the supervision of the District Central SSP for the arrest of the culprits. The officer said that on Thursday morning, a police team encountered the suspects in New Karachi Sector 5-H. During the encounter, a robber, Afzal Hussain, was killed and his accomplice injured, he added.

During the interrogation, the injured suspect revealed that the deceased suspect was involved in Rahman's murder and the robbery at the foam shop. The young man had attempted to catch the suspects, which prompted them to shoot him, resulting in his death.

DIG Baloch said more than a dozen cases were registered against the deceased suspect. He added that a crackdown had also been initiated on a street crime gang in District West, resulting in the arrest of eight members. He informed the media that police were investigating into how that gang had acquired weapons.

During the past two weeks, 31 police encounters with criminals had taken police, said the West DIG. He added that three robbers were killed and 31 injured suspects arrested during the encounters. All the culprits were habitual criminals who had been arrested and jailed before.

“We are trying to arrest criminals involved in robbery attempts to prevent deaths and injuries to civilians,” the officer asserted, adding that if crime persisted in any area, the SHO had the most responsibility for it. He also pointed out faults in the investigation and criminal justice system.

No moral ground

The Pakistan People Party’s (PPP) government has put the people of Karachi at the mercy of armed robbers and has no moral ground to continue its rule in the province.

Hafiz Naeemur Rehman, the central emir-elect of the Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan (JI), said this on Thursday as he spoke with journalists before attending the funeral prayers for Syed Hamid Ali — an elderly member of the JI who was shot dead by armed robbers in North Karachi on Wednesday.

According to reports, 65-year-old Ali was buying fruits from a vendor when muggers came to rob the vendor. As the vendor put up resistance, the muggers opened fire that hit and killed Ali. Rehman lambasted the PPP government in Sindh and relevant departments for the lawlessness in Karachi. He asserted that the crime rate in the city reflected a total failure and rather patronage of crime by the government, police and other relevant quarters.

As many as 14 innocent Karachiites had lost their lives for offering resistance to robbers in the holy month of Ramazan while instead of curbing the street crime, the police high-ups advised the citizens not to resist mugging attempts, the JI leader said.

He maintained that there was no law and order in Karachi and the police were busy in protocol and security for VVIPs or they had been minting money. He warned that the JI would launch a protest movement and surround the Chief Minister House if the situation was not changed.

He condemned the recruitment in the police force on political grounds and termed it a major cause along with corruption for the failure of the police department.

Stressing the need for police reforms, Rehman demanded action across the board against black sheep in the law enforcement agencies and induction of local of Karachi in the police department on a priority basis. Later, Abdul Rafay, the son of the victim, led the funeral prayers for his father. A large number of JI activists and residents of the area attended the last rites.