Law and order: 5 prisoners escape in police van attack

Police said the vehicle was on its back from Faisalabad when it was attacked near Mari Pattan.

FAISALABAD: Five prisoners escaped on Monday night when armed assailants attacked a police van carrying prisoners on Faisalabad-Okara Road. Police said three policemen, including a head constable, were injured in the incident. Constables Muhammad Parvaiz, Muhammad Bashir (driver) and Constable Muhammad Noor had been taken to divisional headquarters hospital where their condition was reportedly out of danger. Police said the vehicle carrying eight prisoners involved in robberies was on its back from Faisalabad when it was attacked near Mari Pattan. Police said the assailants approached the van on a car and a motorcycle and opened fire at it. The prisoners who escaped were indentified as Abrar Shah, Sarfaraz Shah, Muhammad Asif, Asif Ahmad and Muhammad Asif. Faisalabad City Police Officer (CPO) Haidar Ashraf and the Okara SSP are jointly supervising the team formed to trace the criminals.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 4^th, 2013.