RAHIM YAR KHAN: Police claim that four suspects allegedly involved in the kidnapping of two minor sons of a senior doctor at Khanpur were killed “in the firing by their own accomplices” near a police barrier near Kandair Pull, Ahmedpur Lama, on Monday.

In a press release, district police spokesperson Saif Ali Wains said on a tip-off a picket was set up in the limits of Ahmedpur Lama police station to arrest some criminals, led by station house officers (SHOs) Naveed Nawaz Wahla and Saifullah Malhi, on the instructions of Sadiqabad Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Shahzeb Chachar.

When police tried to stop a suspected car, the driver sped it up and hit the picket barrier in a bid of escape.

When the police chased the car, the occupants opened indiscriminate fire that was retaliated by the personnel. He said the car stopped abruptly, and on being checked the four occupants were found shot dead, allegedly in the firing of their own accomplices.

The spokesperson said that two accomplices of the dead suspects managed to escape. He claimed that the dead suspects were identified as Usman, Haseeb, Junaid and Raheel as per the photocopies of identity cards recovered from their pockets.

He said the police also recovered a kalashnikov gun and three pistols from the car.

On further investigation, it was revealed that the dead criminals were involved in the kidnapping of two sons of a doctor at Khanpur, three days back, the spokespersons claimed.

According to police sources, the four suspects, along with two women, were arrested by police immediately after the recovery of Dr Hassan Mehmood’s sons Shayaan and Subhan.

However, they said, the police neither disclosed the details of the children’s recovery, nor the arrest of the four suspects.

The RY Khan DPO had then said that sharing details with the media could affect the investigations into the kidnapping case.

Published in Dawn, April 11th, 2023