LARKANA: The Lark­ana police on Thursday claimed to have shot dead six “most wanted criminals” in an encounter in the riverine area falling within the Baradi Jatoi police station of Khairpur district.

They said the Khairpur police extended their cooperation to the Larkana police by sealing off the area along the two districts’ border where the criminals were trapped on a tip-off.

The dead were identified as Pathan alias Pathoo Narejo, Iqbal Narejo (each carrying a head money of Rs1 million), Abbas Narejo (Iqbal Narejo’s brother), Akhtiyar Narejo (son-in-law of Nazroo Narejo, a ‘history-sheeter’ who was killed by police a few years ago), Malan Shaikh alias Maloo Shaikh and Waheed Rind.

The Larkana police also claimed to have recovered sophisticated arms and a sizeable quantity of ammunition from their possession.

The haul included two anti-aircraft guns, rocket launchers, bullets and Kalashnikov, 3G and 4G rifles.

Larkana SSP Masood Bangash told the media that the tip-off about the gang’s existence in the riverine area was received at about midnight and a strong contingent of police was rushed to the specified katcha area located within the limits of the Keti Mumtaz police station and spread into the Khairpur district limits.

Digital devices were also used to locate the gang, he added. The SSP said that the gang was wanted by police in numerous cases of kidnapping for ransom, murder, robbery.

The police officer said that the gangsters opened fire upon seeing the approaching police contingent and in the ensuing gunfight, the gangsters retreated into the jungle.

They were chased and killed within the limits of Khairpur district’s riverine area, he added.

A day earlier, two policemen were wounded during a search operation in the Bakrani riverine area.

Published in Dawn, October 23rd, 2020