PESHAWAR, Dec 16: The city police have arrested three hired assassins wanted by the Peshawar and Lahore police in several murder cases, said a senior official here on Friday. Senior Superintendent of Police (operation) Saeed Wazir told a press conference that the accused had confessed their crimes, including the killing of two sons of a retired major in Hayatabad township.

The SSP said the police were tipped-off about the presence of two hit men in the city. A police party carried out a raid on Thursday night and arrested accused Misal Khan and Farhad, both residents of Akhund Mohammad Landi village on the outskirts of Peshawar.

During interrogation, the accused identified their ringleader as Awal Khan, a resident of Dag village. Police raided the place and arrested him, the SSP maintained.

The SSP said Misal Khan and Farhad had confessed that they had been paid by someone for eliminating the sons of the major. Last year, they said, they were hired for killing another person at Minar-i-Pakistan in Lahore.

The SSP said the accused were involved in at least nine crimes, including killings, vehicle snatching and car stealing and robberies.

Police would seek physical remand of the accused from a local court and their case would be transferred to the investigation department of the Capital City Police, he added.

Meanwhile, the Shah Qabool police on Thursday night raided a den of match fixers on Sarki Road and arrested accused Asif Hasan and Hasan Raza and seized the stake money of Rs70,000.

A press release issued on Friday said that the Kabuli police had arrested Tanveer and Mohammad Akram. Police also seized television sets and computers used in the match fixing, it added.