Novelty bridge heist: Flour dealer robbed, traders protest

FAISALABAD: Unidentified men took away Rs290,000 from a flour dealer near Factory Area on Friday. Police said Muhammad Tahir, a resident of Ayub Colony on Jhang Road, was returning home after collecting money from various shopkeepers when four armed men riding two motorbikes intercepted him near the Novelty bridge. They took away his cash and fled.

Following the incident, shopkeepers and residents of the area people staged a protest demonstration against police for failing to curb crime. Talking to newsmen, Abdul Ghafoor, one of the protesters said, “This is not the first robbery near Novelty Bridge. Nearly two dozen people have been robbed over the last two weeks.” He said residents of the area had been complaining about the robberies but there had been no visible improvement.

Later, a police team met with the protestors and assured them that those who had robbed the flour dealer would be arrested shortly and punished.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 27^th, 2014.