Abducted minor rescued, two suspects killed

Police rescued a five-year-old boy during an exchange of fire near Do Darya on Tuesday as two of the four men involved in the minor’s short-term kidnapping were killed.

The men had abducted Shahzaib Umar Ahmad in the morning from Khayaban-e-Tariq in Phase-VI of the Defence Housing Authority. The car carrying the boy and two of the kidnappers was later intercepted by a Sea View Police Post team near the Village Hotel.

The suspects tried to speed away, but the police pursued them. After a brief exchange of fire near Do Darya, the law enforcers rescued Shahzaib and arrested the two men in an injured condition.

The wounded men were taken to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, but they died of excessive bleeding before they could reach the health facility. They were later identified as Nadeem Aslam and Shahid Manzoor.

The kidnapping

Ahmad, the boy’s father, told the police that he left the house to drop his son at school when two suspects intercepted their vehicle at gunpoint, said District South SSP Sarfaraz Nawaz. “Two of the men got in their car and told the driver to move the vehicle slowly. As they were moving forward, another car arrived on the scene, and then the boy was shifted to that vehicle.”

As the car carrying the minor sped away, the suspects in the father’s vehicle demanded Rs150 million for releasing the boy. They, however, later agreed on a ransom of Rs7 million. One of the suspects then received a call, following which the father was dropped in Korangi. The driver was allowed to leave with the vehicle a while later as the suspects made their escape.  

The rescue

SSP Nawaz said Ahmad made his way to the Darakhshan police station to file a complaint, but he found that his son had already been rescued.

According to the Sea View Police Post incharge, they had intercepted a white car bearing no registration plate near the Village Hotel. The suspects dropped the boy and then tried to speed away.

The police team pursued them, but the suspects got out of their vehicle at Khayaban-e-Bilal near Do Darya and opened fire on the law enforcers. Police shot and injured the two suspects, but they later died of excessive bleeding. The South SSP said the suspects killed in the encounter have no criminal record. Police suspect that a new group has surfaced in the city to commit short-term kidnappings for ransom.