LAHORE: The provincial capital police have engaged the Federal Investigation Agency for the arrest of ‘most wanted criminal’ and ex-police inspector Abid Boxer through Interpol.

The investigation wing of the Lahore police provided criminal record of the accused to the Interpol through FIA.

Abid Boxer, who had served the Lahore police as SHO at various police stations, was dubbed as ‘encounter specialist.’

He had ‘endeared’ himself to the top PML-N leadership and the bureaucracy in the [then] Shahbaz Sharif government after he killed many “criminals” in allegedly staged encounters.

Before proceeding against him, the police issued his red warrant and then processed the case for his arrest through Interpol.

Lahore Investigation SSP Mubashar Macken said Boxer was wanted in over a dozen cases of murder, attempted murder, land-grabbing etc.

Most of the cases were lodged against him at various police stations of Lahore, he said.

The [important] murder case due to which he had fled Pakistan was lodged against him with Qilla Gujar Singh police station after the death of a retired army brigadier, Naseem Ashraf.

Ashraf’s wife had lodged the case accusing Abid Boxer of his death claiming that he wanted to illegally occupy the cinema which was owned by her husband in 2008.

The police had also mentioned in the FIR that the accused committed forgery, and the complainant nominated Boxer’s maternal uncle and his children too in the same case.

The SSP said Abid Boxer was also wanted in many other cases lodged against him at Batapur, Faisal Town, North Cantt, Millat Park, Sabzazar and South Cantt.

“We have requested the Interpol through FIA to trace the hideouts of the accused abroad and help the police in his arrest,” Mr Makkan said.

To a question about his arrest and the news stories run by some Tv channels, he denied the information.

He said even no official confirmation was available about the hideouts of the criminal abroad.

Resident of Chakwal district, Abid had joined the police as an assistant sub-inspector on sports basis in 1988 and was later promoted to the rank of inspector after he staged a number of allegedly “fake encounters.”

Published in Dawn, February 9th, 2018