Provincial capital sees string of police shootouts

10 suspected robbers apprehended following encounters

LAHORE:

At least ten suspected robbers were arrested after being injured in police encounters in various areas of the provincial capital.

An increasing trend in police encounters has been observed since the last week of May in Lahore, with more than ten incidents reported in that week alone.

In the first ten days of June, the City Division reported the most significant number of encounters.

On June 3 (Monday), two suspected robbers were arrested after being injured in a police encounter near Shahdara Patha Mandi.

Reportedly, police had signalled four suspected motorcyclists to stop. Instead, they opened fire, leading to an exchange in which two suspects, Mohram Saleh and Ejaz, received bullet injuries and fell. The other suspects fled the scene.

On June 8 (Saturday), a suspect was arrested after being injured in a police encounter with Islampura police. The police team had signaled suspected motorcyclists to stop, but they fired instead of complying.

During the exchange of gunfire, a suspect, identified as Usman Mansha, was injured and arrested.

On June 9 (Sunday), two more suspected robbers were arrested after being injured in separate police encounters.

Near Badami Bagh, Band Road, a police team confronted suspected robbers on motorcycles. The suspects opened fire, injuring one suspect, identified as Bilal Ahmad, who was then arrested. Later that day, another encounter near Data Darbar, Gora Qabristan, resulted in the injury and arrest of a suspect identified as Bilal Nawaz.

On June 10 (Monday), four suspected robbers were arrested after being injured in two police encounters in the Ravi Road and Gujjarpura areas. In the first incident, near Jungle Colony, police signalled to stop three motorcyclists, who responded with gunfire

In the exchange, two suspects, Usman and Basharat, were injured and arrested. The second encounter in Karol Pind, Gujjarpura, also resulted in the injury and arrest of two suspects, Rana Shahid and Rana Shahzad.

Additionally, police arrested two suspected gang members, Shakeel Abbass and Faizan, seizing two pistols and bullets. They were reportedly involved in cases of robbery and snatching.

In the last week of May, over ten encounters were reported across the city.

On June 2 (Sunday), two police constables were injured during a routine encounter in Nawab Town.

In Batapur, a notorious shooter involved in numerous heinous crimes, including murder and robbery, was killed in an encounter with the Organised Crime Unit (OCU) Iqbal Town on Saturday evening. Another confrontation occurred in Baghbanpura when police attempted to halt two motorcyclists near Ring Road, Motorway Moriyan Mehmood Booti.

Further encounters in South Cantonment and Barki resulted in injuries and arrests. Suspects Imran and Qaiser were arrested in South Cantonment, while Sultan and Kamran were apprehended in Barki.

Police continue to investigate these incidents as they intensify their efforts to combat crime in Lahore.