Online 'gunrunners' arrested

CTD received a tip-off that a shipment of handguns from Darra Adam Khel was coming to the city

KARACHI:

Police have cracked a network of traders selling arms illegally on social media platforms.

Two arms manufacturing companies based in the famous weapons manufacturing cluster of Darra Adam Khel in the Khyber district of K-P were named by two suspects arrested in separate incidents.

One of the suspects told the police he would get Rs10,000 commission on sale of each handgun.

The Sindh Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) Investigation Wing arrested the two alleged operatives involved in the supply of illegal weapons during two separate operations on Sunday night.

According to a CTD spokesman on Monday, the Investigation Wing received intelligence regarding the delivery of weapons ordered online from Darra Adam Khel, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) to Karachi. Acting on this information, two teams were deployed to apprehend the suspects and seize the illegal arms.

In the first operation, the CTD team targeted the Mubina Town area, leading to the arrest of Syed Bilal, son of Syed Parvez. From Bilal's possession, the authorities recovered four 9mm pistols. During interrogation, Bilal disclosed that he had ordered these weapons online from Usama Khan, the owner of Khan Arms Company in Darra Adam Khel.

The second operation took place in Samanabad, District Central, where the CTD team arrested Hamza Ali Khan, son of Wali Khan. The police recovered two 9mm pistols and ammunition from Hamza. He confessed that he had purchased these pistols from Ali Badshah, who owns Lucky Arms Company in Darra Adam Khel and conducts online arms sales. Hamza revealed that he had come to Karachi to sell the pistols, earning a commission of Rs10,000 per pistol.

The spokesman noted that in recent years, there has been an alarming trend of criminals, hobbyists, and students from colleges and universities ordering weapons online from KPK. These weapons are then transported to Karachi and other cities using buses and private transport.Authorities have warned citizens that ordering these arms online is illegal and the supplied weapons are obtained through illicit means. The CTD has registered cases against the arrested individuals and has initiated further investigations into the illegal arms network.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 21^st, 2024.