Suspected dacoit killed by industrialist’s son

KARACHI: An alleged dacoit was shot dead by the son of industrialist Mian Iftikhaar Ahmad.

The police, however, have yet to ascertain the dead man’s identity. According to Ahmad, six dacoits entered his house on Khayaban-e-Ittehad at around 3:30 pm. “We [the men in the family] and our servants were out of the house and only the cook was at home with women,” Ahmad said.

According to him, the robbers must have been assisted by the cook, Naeem, who was hired two days ago. “Naeem opened the gate for them and left the spot himself, so of course he helped the robbers enter my house.” Ahmad said that when he discovered that Naeem, who claimed to be from Rawalpindi, could not speak Potohari, he asked him to leave.

However, a day later Naeem approached his wife and was subsequently rehired. However, Ahmad and his son Taimur Khan returned while the dacoits were still in the house. “I was going upstairs when I saw them and ran towards the basement.

They opened fire at me,” said Taimur. According to Taimur, he had his 9 mm pistol within reach and retaliated but the dacoits “continued following [him],” asking him to surrender the gun. In the exchange of fire, one of the dacoits was killed. Five bullet marks were visible in the basement. The other five dacoits ran away before the police arrived, said the family.

According to SHO Gizri Police Station Rana Maqsood, who arrived on the scene after receiving a call through 15, the suspects had fled. He added that “nothing was recovered from the body” of the dead man. The police, however, are still trying to figure out what happened. Meanwhile, a FIR has been lodged against the unknown dacoits by Ahmad’s family.

According to police officials, the man shot dead received two bullets in the chest, on the right and the left side. Ahmad, meanwhile, linked this incident with what he described as threats to industrialists in the city and the government’s “failure” to provide security. “On the one hand, industries are being destroyed because of forced power cuts and on the other hand we are under attack from criminals,” he said.