Two car thieves caught after shootout

The Westridge police on Tuesday arrested two suspected car lifters who were wanted for stealing several vehicles and recovered a stolen car from their possession after an exchange of fire.

A police spokesperson said that during routine patrolling, officers of the Westridge police signalled a vehicle to stop on School Road in the Allahabad area.

Instead of stopping, three occupants of the vehicle allegedly started firing at the police squad.

The police officers retaliated and managed to arrest two car lifters in an injured condition and later shifted them to a hospital. They were identified as Sagheer Ahmed Shah and Karamat Ali Shah.

Their accomplice managed to escape but a search was launched to trace him.

The police impounded the Mehran car they were travelling in and later discovered that it had been reported as stolen from the Sadiqabad area.

On receiving information about the encounter, Potohar SP Syed Ali, Cantt SDPO and Westridge SHO along with another police squad rushed to the spot.

A case has been registered against the car lifters while further investigations are underway, the official added.

Rawalpindi City Police Officer (CPO) Ahsan Younas has appreciated the performance of the Westridge police and directed police personnel to continue their efforts to check the activities of car thieves.