VEHARI, Aug 13: The district police claimed on Monday night to have shot dead ‘most wanted’ dacoit-cum-kidnapper Riaz Rath in an encounter at 12/WB bridge near Pakpattan, some eight kilometres from here.

Talking to newsmen on Tuesday, District Police Officer Syed Javed Husain Shah said Riaz Rath was the ring leader of the gang. He claimed some members of the gang, Zahoor Rath, Abid Husain Bhatti, Zahoor Kharal, Shakoor alias Shakoori, Mumtaz alias Mumtazi, Waheed alias Waheedi and Murtaza alias Murti, had already been killed in various shootouts with the police in the South Punjab.

On July 29 last, he said the gang’s three members, Zahoora Rath, Abid Bhatti and Zahoor Kharal, were killed in a shootout with police at Karampur. He said Riaz Rath escaped that time.

The DPO claimed Riaz was involved in over 100 cases of murder, kidnap for ransom and dacoity and was wanted by Lodhran, Bahawalpur, Bahawalnagar and Vehari police.

He said Riaz and his four accomplices, Gamna Kudan, Waris Mahar, Mukhtar and Shafi Muhana, fled a local judicial lock-up after killing security guard on Nov 28, 2000. His four accomplices were still at large, he added.

Mr Shah told newsmen that the accused on Dec 19, 2001, looted Rs50,000 in cash from landlord Mehr Alam’s house at Kehror Pacca and kidnapped for ransom his 19-year-old son Shah Jahan. He said the family had paid Rs500,000 as ransom to the accused but failed to find any clue to the whereabouts of his son. The accused two months back demanded another Rs2 million from the landlord, the official said.

He said Riaz had kidnapped some 40 days back one Azra and his younger brother Babar Ali, 6, from Kehror Pacca and demanded a ransom of Rs2 million from his family.

The official claimed the police traced the accused through his calls to the family of the kidnapped siblings from various private public call offices. He said the PTCL helped the police getting to the whereabouts of the accused.

Led by an information, he said the police team raided the hideout where Riaz Rath, Azra and her brother Ali reached on a motorbike. The police and the accused exchanged fire in the ensuing 15 minutes after which Rath was shot dead, claimed the DPO.

The police claimed having recovered a kalashnikove, a hand grenade, two magazines and a motorbike (LDA-862) from him. He also added the accused had kidnapped for ransom one Kaniz from Lodhran two months back. Of late, he stayed for sometime in Miran Shah area of the NWFP with Azra. He said the police had recovered Azra.

The body of Riaz was sent to the District Headquarters Hospital for autopsy. None of his family members had so far contacted police till last reports came in.