In the line of duty: Capital’s best ‘hunter’ falls

Asghar Abbasi was shot dead as he intercepted a car that was snatched from F-10/2.

ISLAMABAD:

He could have easily saved his life by stepping away and letting the carjackers go. Instead he chose to stand in their way.

Minutes after receiving information, Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI) Asghar Abbasi was on the road chasing a car snatched from Sector F-10/2 on Saturday afternoon.

Following his instincts, he managed to reach the right spot on Islamabad Expressway — a traffic signal in Sector I-8 close to the Faizabad area. However, the carjackers turned out to be too bold.

They shot at Abbasi and other police officials. Abbasi was hit in the abdomen and rushed to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences. He died 15 minutes later.

The two carjackers managed to flee from the halting point set up by Abbasi after the police shooter — who fired back three shots — missed them from a very close range. They were given a brief chase but they left the highway and went into Sector I-8/4. There they ran into a dead end, abandoned the car and escaped.

“They hit two Eagle Squad officials riding a motorbike when the latter tried to stop them. In panic, they entered a blocked road on the service road near a graveyard where they abandoned the vehicle,” said Superintendent of Police Ishaq Warraich.

Following the incident, the police launched a search operation in the vicinity and arrested a few suspects including Afghan nationals. They were held for questioning as one of the suspects “looked like an Afghan”, according to a witness.

The police said that the vehicle’s driver, Ameer Bakhsh, came out just when the suspects were trying to steal it in front of a house in Sector F-10/2.

Seeing Bakhsh, they pushed him into the vehicle at gunpoint and dropped him in Sector G-8 before heading towards Faizabad to make their way out of the city. They probably did not count on Abbasi to intercept them.

The forensic officials recovered a bullet shell from inside the vehicle but no trace of blood was found, which suggests that the suspects escaped unhurt. They said the police shooter’s bullets hit the bonnet and headlamp of the car.

Among his fraternity of the Anti-Car Lifting Cell, Abbasi was known as the best hunter and had multiple success stories of arresting carjackers and recovering stolen vehicles.

“He was always like this — foolishly bold. I told him he would get hurt some day,” said Mushtaq, one of his colleagues.

Abbasi’s funeral prayers were offered at Police Lines Headquarters. Adviser to Prime Minister on Interior Rehman Malik, along with senior police officials, attended the prayers.

The deceased cop was also promoted to the rank of inspector, and the Inspector General of Police Bani Amin said his son would be recruited in Islamabad police as an ASI while two of his relatives will be hired as constables.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 8^th, 2012.