Woman killed in ‘robbery bid’

According to East DIG, the death of wife of an NED professor was not a case of target killing

KARACHI: A woman was killed in a firing incident near Maskan Chowrangi, Gulshan-e-Iqbal on Monday. East DIG has said that the incident looked like a robbery bid gone wrong. The deceased was the wife of the chairperson of NED University's Department of Economics and Management Sciences.

Police have collected evidence from the site and started an inquiry into the incident.

Shazia, 40, wife of Dr Ali Raza Khan was travelling in a Cuore, number plate AGL 344, in Block 7 of Gulshan-e-Iqbal when she was shot. She was immediately taken to a private hospital in the area and later shifted to another private hospital at Stadium Road in critical condition.

When the police received news of the firing, East DIG Amir Farooqi, East Investigation SSP Dr Farooq and Gulshan-e-Iqbal SP Shah Nawaz Chahchar reached the spot and immediately summoned the crime scene investigation team which collected the fingerprints from the car, the hook that broke off from the purse and other pieces of evidence.

While talking to the media, Farooqi said the incident was not a case of target killing. The deceased lived on the premises of the varsity and used to visit the area near Maskan Chowrangi daily to buy groceries. She was headed back to the varsity when she was shot. According to the initial investigation, robbers attempted to loot Shazia. When she put up resistance, the robbers shot her.

An empty bullet shell of a 9mm pistol was found at the site. Shazia also suffered a bullet wound on her face. Farooqi said that as far as the robbery was concerned, nothing was clear and the police would only be able to give further information after talking to the family of the deceased.

The East DIG said that the area where the incident occurred was covered by CCTV cameras and efforts were being made to acquire the footage to ascertain how the incident occurred and how many people were involved.

While responding to a question, Farooqi said that a local gang was involved in the firing incident at a hotel in Pehlwan Goth, Gulistan-e-Johar in which two people were killed. It was a case of extortion. The East DIG said that the prime accused has been identified and he has been arrested before on charges of murder. He was released on bail, Farooqi added.

The East DIG said that when the hotel owner received the call for extortion money, he did not inform the police. The gangs which have been active in the area in the past were involved in the incident, added Farooqi.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 16^th, 2019.