Cop martyred in late-night firing incident laid to rest

The policeman martyred in the early hours of Sunday in a firing incident in the posh locality of Defence was laid to rest after his funeral prayers were offered at the police headquarters, Garden.

The funeral prayers for the 35-year-old martyred police constable, Khalid Mehmood, were attended by a large number of senior police and Rangers officials, including Inspector General of Police (IGP) Sindh Dr Syed Kaleem Imam and MPA Sheharyar Maher, besides his family members and relatives. He was later laid to rest at a graveyard.

The IGP offered his condolences to the family and assured them that the culprits would be arrested. The police chief also announced compensation and other facilities for the heirs of the martyred cop, including covering the educational expenses of his children.

The constable and a passerby, Ramzan, were gunned down and Ramzan’s companion Saeed Ahmed wounded in a firing incident that took place on Street No 26, Defence Housing Authority Phase VI near Khayaban-e-Bukhari, within the limits of the Darakshan police station, at around 3:20am on Sunday.

The deceased cop was posted to the Darakshan police station and was shot dead while he was returning home after completing his duty hours. Though the armed men who shot him managed to escape before a police team reached the site, the police investigators found a white SUV on the crime scene which the culprits had left while fleeing.

The deceased policeman hailed from Shikarpur. The other deceased, Ramzan, hailed from Rahim Yar Khan. He and his injured companion Saeed worked at a bungalow in the area and were returning home from work when the incident occurred.

The police investigators also seized four empty shells of a pistol from the crime scene and sent them to the forensic division of the Sindh police. Further investigations are under way.