Five-member JIT to probe Jhang shootout

Petrol pump employee killed, three guards injured in Jan 2 clash

LAHORE:

Police have constituted a five-member Joint Investigation Team (JIT) to probe a firing incident earlier this month that left a petrol pump employee dead and three security guards injured.

Jhang District Police Officer (DPO) Bilal Iftikhar Kiyani said the JIT—headed by a Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), has been directed to complete its investigation within one week.

The incident occurred on January 2 following a road accident that escalated into a clash between members of two convoys.

One convoy was reportedly linked to Jhang Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Sheikh Fawad Akram, the younger brother of PTI leader Sheikh Waqas Akram.

In the FIR, Fawad stated that he and his friends were heading to his petrol pump when another convoy allegedly overtook them and a vehicle rammed into one of their cars from behind.

He alleged that armed men stepped out of the vehicles and opened fire, injuring his security guards, identified as Iftikhar, Ismatullah and Sajid, and petrol pump employee Mohsin, who later succumbed to his injuries.

Addressing the media, senior lawyer Makhdoom Majeed said his client, Mukarram Waheed, was not present at the scene and had no role in either the killing or the injuries.

He argued that the case had been wrongly portrayed as a politically motivated murder, asserting that Mukarram had been falsely implicated to harm his business and social standing.

Majeed claimed that CCTV footage obtained from the petrol pump did not show Mukarram anywhere near the site of the incident and that forensic analysis of the footage was still pending.

He further alleged that the footage would reveal that Fawad's guards were armed, despite restrictions on the open display of weapons.

DPO Kiyani said two of the nominated suspects had been arrested, while a third had obtained pre-arrest bail.

He added that 13 other suspects were currently unidentified and could be nominated during the course of the investigation.

According to the DPO, initial findings suggest the clash erupted after a vehicle from one convoy struck another.

CCTV footage from the petrol pump has been secured to determine who opened fire and whether the nominated suspects were directly involved. He added that, based on preliminary assessment, the incident did not appear to be premeditated.

Police said further details would emerge as the JIT proceeds with its inquiry.