He said, he said: Police doubt cricketer Asif's robbery complaint

‘Two men had a fight. There was no robbery’.

LAHORE:

Former Pakistan cricketer Muhammad Asif claimed on Wednesday he had been robbed by a restaurant owner near Ghazi Road on Tuesday night.

The police, however, were reluctant to buy his story.

Asif filed a complaint with Defence-B police saying he was robbed by Sohaib Dogar, a restaurant owner, and his three accomplices, on his way home from the airport.

He told police that the armed robbers had taken away his wallet which contained Rs92,000 and bank cards, as well as his passport, a Rs1 million wrist watch and some important documents.



Police said Asif’s lawyer filed the complaint at around noon on Wednesday. They said a complaint against him had been lodged by Dogar a few hours earlier.

Dogar claimed that Muhammad Asif, his friend Taimur and two other accomplices had thrashed him at his restaurant in Defence’s H-Block market on Tuesday. He said the cricketer and his friends had been drunk. He said Asif had also abused him and his employees and damaged some of the restaurant’s furniture before leaving.

Dogar said Asif had made up the robbery complaint to cover up for his offences at the restaurant.



Police said Dogar had lodged his complaint at 4am. They said initial investigation suggested that the two men had a dispute but there had been no robbery.

The Defence-B SHO said, “Sohaib and Asif have apparently been friends… they had a fist fight last night [Tuesday] after both got drunk.”

The SHO believed that the parties would not pursue their complaints. He said police had not registered the FIRs.

At a press conference later on Wednesday, Asif denied the restaurant owner’s claims. He said, “I have dined several times at the market. I recognised the robber…He and his accomplices mugged me.”

Asif said Dogar had previous criminal record. However police records showed that the only other complaint against Dogar had been filed by Raja Haroon Nazeer and that too after Asif and Sohaib had filed theirs. Nazeer said Sohaib Dogar had tried to intimidate him by aerial firing shots outside his home on Tuesday.

Asif said some police officials were “friends with the criminals.”

CCPO Chaudhry Shafeeq Gujjer has directed the Cantt division SP to call the parties over and resolve the matter amicably.

SP Umer Riaz said he had called both to his office but “they didn’t show up on time.” He said Asif and Dogar had now been invited to his office on Thursday [tomorrow].

Published in The Express Tribune, June 27^th, 2013.