Target killings: Four people gunned down, two injured

Police claim suspects used 9mm pistols and motorbikes to get away.

PESHAWAR: A policeman and a security guard were shot dead by unidentified motorcyclists outside a National Bank of Pakistan branch in Bara Gate on Thursday afternoon.

The police suspect this could be a part of a recent wave of target killings in the city.

Police constable Roohul Amin and security guard Noor Akbar were on duty outside the bank’s main entrance when the suspects opened fire at them using a 9mm pistol.

The bank manager, a man identified as Atta Muhammad, was also injured. Although Muhammad was standing inside the building, he was hit by a bullet when the suspects opened fire at the deceased. Muhammad was taken to the hospital and is said to be in a stable condition.



The incident took place within the jurisdiction of the Pishtakhara police station.

The police said the incident was initially mistaken for a bank robbery but the suspects did not try to enter or rob the bank.

“This is part of an on-going killing spree taking place across the city in which many policemen have been murdered,” said one official. “The suspects managed to escape in the panic which followed the shooting.”

In an unrelated incident, two women were gunned down near Old Firdous Cinema on GT Road by unidentified men. The authorities claim one of them was approximately 60-years-old and the other woman was around the age of 30. They were sitting by the road when the suspects shot at them. A pedestrian identified as Haya Khan was also injured and taken to Lady Reading Hospital.

The police said both women had not been identified as yet.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 22^nd, 2013.