Police bust gang of five in Rawalpindi

Suspects would recce an area disguised as vegetable vendors with pushcarts

RAWALPINDI: The police have arrested a five-member gang involved in looting the affluent traders of the city.

Rawal Division SP Usman Tariq Butt told a press conference that the accused Mohammad Rehman, Anwar, Nasir, Ikramullah and Gul Ghafar were involved in organized robberies. The suspects used to disguise as vendors in front of the targeted shops for reconnaissance and committed robbery whenever they had the best opportunity, he added.

The SP said that the suspects looted a trader in China Market in December where they robbed some Rs3 million as well as equivalent Iranian currency of 2.5 million rupees at gunpoint. He added that the suspects have confessed their crime during the investigation along with their procedure of committing the crime.

Further, four pistols and bullets were also recovered from the suspects while the investigation is still underway.

The SP Rawal told the media that the police was close to arresting the suspects of firing on police picket in Sadiqabad while the wounded in the incident were being given the best medical facilities in Benazir Bhutto Hospital.

Usman Tariq also said that the police arrested and registered cases against some 285 kite sellers in the last two months while a huge number of kites and strings were recovered from the suspects.

Addressing a press conference Superintendent of Police (SP) Muhammad Usman Butt on Monday said the city police on the directive of City Police Officer (CPO) Rawalpindi Abbas Ahmed made hectic efforts to arrest the accused and rounded up Muhammad Rehman, Anwar, Nasir,Akram and Gull Ghaffar allegedly involved in several dacoities in Rawal Townarea.

During the preliminary investigation, the gang members confessed to committing burglaries in different areas including a big robbery at College Road. To a question he said, the culprits behind Sadiqabad firing incident in which a police constable was martyred and five others wounded would be arrested soon.

The SP said that on the directives of Regional Police Officer (RPO) Ahmed Ishaq Jahangir and CPO, best medical treatment facilities were being provided to the injured cops.

He said that dedicated, brave and courageous police personnel who are discharging their duties at the risk of their lives for the protection of citizens and eradication of crime are pride of the police department.

The police personnel were vigilant to combat crimes and the crime fighting would continue till elimination, he added. He informed that Rawalpindi District Police registered 659 cases besides arresting 203 culprits involved in different crimes during last two months. 285 cases were lodged against kite sellers and kite flying ban violators. At least 500,000 kites, 9,148 string spools and other items were confiscated, he said adding, on the instruction of the CPO Abbas Ahsan special arrangements were made in the district to enforce the kite flying ban.

Usman Butt said that the police registered 189 cases against the accused for possessing illegal weapons and recovered 85 pistols, five revolvers, three rifle and thousands of bullets from their possession. To a question he said that police in their efforts to purge society of drugs lodged 180 cases against drug peddlers and recovered 812 liters liquor, 67kg hashish, 14.5kg heroin and1.1 kg opium from them.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 26^th, 2019.