Dual Chinese citizen shot dead in Karachi

Couple running dental clinic in busy Saddar sustain injuries in ‘targeted attack’

KARACHI:

An unknown assailant shot dead a dual Chinese-Pakistani national and injured two others at a dental clinic in the busy Saddar areas of Karachi on Wednesday evening, which the senior police officials described as a targeted attack.

Police said that the assailant entered the HU clinic, disguising as a patient, and then opened fire on the doctors and the staff and escaped on foot. An employee at the clinic, identified as 32-year-old Ronald Diamond Chau died in the attack, they added.

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Two other people, Richard Hu, 74, and his wife, 72-year-old Margaret, were injured. Police said that the body was sent to the Civil Hospital, while the injured were taken to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC), where they were shifted to Aga Khan Hospital.

“Both the injured are out of danger,” Asad Raza, the senior superintendent of police, South, told reporters at the crime scene. He added that all three victims were dual citizens, holding both Chinese and Pakistani nationalities.

Raza said that the shooter had come to the clinic as a patient. Initially, he waited for his turn and when his number was called, he opened fire on the Chinese citizens. “The police have found 7 empties of 9mm pistol, which are being dispatched to the forensic lab,” he added.

The Crime Scene Unit of the police was also present at the scene, gathering evidence, including fingerprints. “Initial investigation shows that the shooting incident was a targeted attack, which was a soft target,” said Sharjeel Kharal, the deputy inspector general (DIG) South.

Kharal also confirmed that the dead person, as well as the injured couple, were dual nationals. According to him, the couple had been running the dental clinic on the Preedy Street, near the iconic Empress Market in Karachi for the past 40 years.

“Footage of the attack has been obtained in which the accused is seen running away on foot,” Kharal said. “Geo-fencing will be done to further investigate the incident,” he added.

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The DIG, while responding to a query, said that the police were trying to get more footage by searching the closed-circuit cameras installed some two kilometres away in order to identify the accused as well as to determine whether there were any facilitators in the attack.

In response to another question, Kharal said: “From the initial investigation, it seems that the aim of the shooter was to target Chinese citizens. But the actual motive would be determined after the arrest of the accused,” he added.

Kharal recalled that the Chinese consulate and the stock exchange were attacked by terrorists in the city in the past. Apart from the suicide bomb attack in Karachi University, he added, there were also bomb blasts in Saddar and Kharadar localities.

Meanwhile, the footage of the escape of the accused also surfaced, in which a man could be seen as soon as the firing takes place inside the clinic. It also showed that panicky pedestrians on the sidewalks after hearing the gun shots.

The footage further showed that the accused wore in black pants and shirt and was wearing a red peak cap while running away from the clinic. While traffic on the road continued to ply in the area.