PESHAWAR, Nov 2: The city police have arrested six members of an inter-provincial gang of robbers and seized a large quantity of stolen goods from their possession, said a senior police official.

Speaking at a press conference at the police headquarters here on Sunday, chief of the Capital City Police Tanvirul Haq Sipra said the gang members were wanted by the police in many cases of robberies in all the major cities of the NWFP and in some cities of the Punjab.

The accused confessed that they were part of a 25-man gang of robbers, mostly comprised Afghan refugees, the CCP said and added that the arrested persons also confessed that they committed 36 highway robberies and burglaries.

Mr Sipra stated the police seized goods worth millions of rupees and weapons, including six hand-grenades, six Kalashnikovs and hundreds of cartridges of different bores from their possession.

Those arrested included ringleader Mir Afzal alias Imran alias Punjabi, a resident of Ganool Baida, Mansehra; Ghafoor alias Ghafooray; Zaman alias Zaman Baba and a woman member of his family, all of them belonged to the tribal area. The remaining two were Afghan refugees namely Babrak and Nawab, the CCP said.

He said the other Afghan members of the gang were gypsies, which made the police task difficult for their arrest as they move from one place to another along with their families.