Cop in hot water over ‘half fry’ encounter

The term 'half fry' and 'full fry' has long been in use among the rogue cops running shady networks of kidnapping, extortion and encounters.

While full fry means dispatching the victim for good in a choreographed shootout, half fry means injuring him so as to implicate him in a heinous crime.

In one such case a head constable was booked for trying to half fry a citizen by shooting him in the leg and declaring him a wanted extortionist. Under pressure from public representatives, the Landhi police station officials had to register an FIR against their colleague and his accomplices.

Initially, Landhi police station SHO had claimed that an extortionist, Jan Sher, was arrested in injured condition in an alleged police encounter. However, later the said encounter turned out to be fake.

Jan Sher's brother, Niaz Ali Khan, filed an FIR at Landhi police station against Head Constable Javed, Shakeel and other named and unknown suspects under section 324.

The complainant, Niaz Ali, stated, "my brother, Jan Sher, was called by Shakeel Kabari and his brother along with others to New Quetta Osman Malai Hotel Sector 36-B Landhi and these people got my brother arrested by giving false information to police."

Jan Sher was arrested by Head Constable Javed along with a police party and a plain clothed person and taken to Landhi police station.

"On this information I came to Landhi police station where I saw that my brother was shot in the left foot and was being taken out of the mobile and being put in an ambulance," Niaz Ali said. He said that he followed the ambulance to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) where he also called his uncle Miraj Muhammad Khan Swati.

"My brother, Jan Sher, told me that Shakeel Kabari and others had misled the police and got me arrested as an extortionist and Head Constable Javed Raza took me to the police station and shot me in the left leg."

Published in The Express Tribune, December 12^th, 2022.