Law and order: Police claim 587 gangs busted this year

1,929 men suspected of involvement in 3,592 crimes arrested.

LAHORE:

Lahore Police claim to have busted 587 criminal gangs and arrested 1,929 men suspected of involvement in 3,592 crimes this year.

Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Ahmad Raza Tahir was told on Saturday at a departmental meeting that stolen valuables worth Rs322 million were recovered from these men.

The 3,592 crimes they are being held for include seven murders, two kidnapping for ransom, 12 robbery-cum-murder, 50 dacoities, 1,179 robberies and 1,862 thefts and burglaries.

Police said the valuables recovered included more than Rs30 million in cash, 235 cars, 657 motorcycles, 1,663 mobile phones, nearly four kg gold jewellery, five mini-buses, seven pick-ups, 30 Suzuki Bolan, 38 rikshaws and two Mazda trucks.

The meeting was also told that 16,453 proclaimed offenders and 10,221 court absconders were also arrested this year.

The proclaimed offenders were wanted in 538 murder cases, 447 cases of attempted murder, 503 dacoities, 1,862 thefts/robberies and 480 other cases. In a crackdown against illegal weapons, city police arrested 3,996 men and registered 3,982 cases against them. As many as 49 Kalashnikov rifles, 174 other rifles, 495 guns, 3439 pistols, 258 revolvers, 42 carbine, 10 mouzer, 53 daggers, 635 magazines and more than one lakh 13,700 bullets were seized from them.

During a campaign against drug sellers, 8,025 men were arrested and 122 kg heroine, 1,114 kg charas, 14 kg opium,   441 kg hashish, 1,745 injections and 50,985 bottles of liquor were recovered from them.

Police also arrested 6,705 people on charges of illegal gambling and recovered Rs9.15 million from them.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 11^th, 2011.