Forest officials injured by ‘smugglers’
Several officials of the KP Forest Department were reportedly injured in an attack by alleged timber smugglers during a crackdown in the Lassan Nawab area in Mansehra here on Thursday.
According to sources, the accused managed to escape with the timber on mules soon after the incident.
They said Sherghar Sub Divisional Forest Officer (SDFO) Sardar Zahoor along with other officials intercepted smugglers on a tip-off, however, during the encounter, the timber smugglers attacked the Forest Department team with sticks and injured SDFO and other officials.
The injured SDFO was shifted to King Abdullah Hospital in Mansehra where he was said to be in stable condition after treatment. Oghi Circle DSPO while talking to media on the issue said that police teams have been moblised to arrest the accused involved in the incident.
An FIR has been registered against the accused including Aslam, Aqeel, Waseem, and Babu, residents of Banda Sher Khan, he said adding that the accused would be arrested soon and brought to justice.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 14th, 2023.