SANGHAR, Nov 14: Three people were killed in an ambush near Maqsoodo Rind, about 78 kms from here, in the wee hours of Wednesday.

Three men — Ali Dost Magsi, his nephew, Arif, and Fazal Hussain — had just left Ali Dost village in the taxi of Ghulam Abbasi and were on the kutcha road when some armed men opened fire on the taxi. Mr Magsi, Mr Hussain, and Mr Abbasi were killed on the spot while Arif was injured.

The villagers rushed to the spot and soon informed the police about the incident.

The SSP, Sanghar, Shahid Hanif, claimed that the men had been killed over a matrimonial dispute.

He said that a girl belonging to the Magsi tribe was married at Rahim Yar Khan and had been divorced some time back. So Mr Magsi accepted her as a wife for his son, which infuriated her former in-laws.

Police have detained a man, Ali Nawaz Magsi, for aiding the killers.

Two dacoits killed: Two notorious dacoits identified as Nizam Jokhio and Deedar Jokhio were killed by Shahdadpur police in an encounter near Phurdi Mori.

They were required in more than a dozen cases of murder, kidnapping for ransom, encounters and arson at Nawabshah and Shahdadpur police stations.

According to SSP Shahid Hanif, SHO Shahdadpur Atta Muhammad Dahri came to know about movement of dacoits near Shahdadpur.

He alerted all the policemen and also posted policemen at important points and bridges.

He himself with heavy contingent of police started patrolling in a mobile. When he reached near Phurdi Mori, the dacoits fired on the mobile.

The police also retaliated and informed the SSP on wireless, who reached there with heavy contingents of police and encircled the entire area.

The exchange of fire lasted for about half an hour. When the firing ceased, on search with help of torches and head light police found the body of Nizam and also recovered a Kalashinkov rifle, a repeater gun about 120 bullets cartridges, and letters for ransom addressed to various landlords and factory owners.

The police also found bloodstains of some wounded dacoits and followed the footprints and bloodstains.

In the morning police located another body of dacoit near Jalal Mori railway tracks. He was identified as Deedar Jokhio who had died due to loss of blood.