ISLAMABAD: Three people were killed and five suffered injuries after two groups clashed in a rural area of the capital on Tuesday night, police said.

According to sources, a dispute over transfer letter of a vehicle worth Rs1 million sparked the gunfight.

A month ago, Changaiz Khan of Athal Village bought a used car from a person of Sri Village, the police said. The vehicle was handed over to the buyer after the payment, but the former owner refused to give the transfer letter.

When Changaiz Khan asked for the transfer letter from the former owner, both men ended up in a brawl, the police said.

A jirga tried to settle the dispute but failed.

The police said Changaiz Khan called the former owner a night before the incident and informed him that he was coming to settle the issue. However, on his way to Sri Village, Changaiz Khan and his companions were ambushed by their rivals near Sri Chowk.

Two men from Changaiz’s side were gunned down before the group could retaliate, forcing their associates to flee from the scene.

Later, the villagers shifted the deceased and the injured to a hospital where one more person succumbed to his injuries on Wednesday.

The other five injured are still in surgical intensive care unit as their condition is critical. They have received multiple injuries from different weapons, the police and the hospital staff added.

The police said they received information about the incident once the bodies reached the hospital.

Later, a team reached the crime scene and found three abandoned submachine guns, a car and a motorcycle, they added.

A case has been registered against nine residents of Sri Village on charges of murder, attempted murder, wrongful restraint, rioting and unlawful assembly, among other charges under the anti-terrorism act.

The police raided Sri Chowk to arrest the nine people nominated in the first information report (FIR), but faced retaliation. The villagers trapped the officials and started firing on them, the police said, adding that the police team also fired as a countermeasure.

The crossfire continued for over an hour and ended after the villagers escaped from the spot.

Later, the police picked up a few villagers and relatives of the accused nominated in the FIR to force the culprits to surrender, the sources added.