BAHAWALPUR: Makhdoom Rashid police in Khanewal district claimed to have recovered a married woman, who was allegedly kidnapped about a year ago and was sold to Katcha area dacoits, who also gang-raped her.

According to anti-honey trap police wing sources, the woman, ‘S’, was allegedly abducted from her house at Chak No 11 MR by her relatives, Ishtiaq, Imran and Shehbaz, who took her to Katcha area, where she was sold to the dacoits.

The sources said that during her illegal confinement the woman was also allegedly gang-raped. On Jan 21, a heavy police contingent raided the house where she was kept by dacoits and recovered her.

The dacoits managed to flee during the police raid.

She was ‘gang-raped’ during confinement

The police party brought her back to Multan and handed her over to her father Allah Bakhsh, brother Nawaz and mother Mukhtar Bibi.

Later, the woman was produced by police in a court in Multan, which allowed her to go with her parents.

The victim’s parents submitted a complaint to the Multan city police officer (CPO), against their three relatives, who had abducted her, for the registration of a case against them.

ENCOUNTERS: Two suspects were allegedly killed and as many others injured during three police “encounters” in Vehari and Multan districts.

In the first incident, Burewala police claimed that two suspected dacoits, identified as Asif of Lahore and Ilyas of Kasur, were killed during an “encounter” near Chatta Meal in the limits of Fateh Shah police station in Vehari district.

According to police PRO, when a police team went to the area responding to an emergency call regarding an armed dacoity, four unidentified men opened fire on the police vehicle.

He said after a crossfire between the attackers and the police, the two suspected criminals were found dead on the spot with bullet marks.

He claimed that they were killed in the firing by their own accomplices, who managed to flee under the cover of darkness.

Police claimed that both Asif and Ilyas were involved in 45 criminal cases registered against them in police stations of Lahore, Kasur, Multan and Vehari. They had been declared proclaimed offenders in five cases, the police added.

Police recovered Rs145,000 cash, a snatch motorcycle and two pistols lying near the suspects’ bodies.

A case against the two unidentified fleeing accomplices of the dead suspects was registered by the police and their bodies were shifted to hospital for the postmortem examination.

Meanwhile, Seetal Mari police in Multan district claimed that a suspect, Faisal alias Chowandi of Vehari was injured in an “encounter” when police intercepted him and his accomplice while they were on a motorcycle at Pull Akhtarwali.

The police said Faisal, who was allegedly involved in 22 cases, told the investigators that he had also opened fire on a team of Dolphin Force and police Lorry Adda police in Multan.

The injured suspect was shifted to hospital and a case was registered against him, while raids were being conducted to arrest his fleeing accomplice.

Besides, Multan city police claimed to have arrested an injured suspect, identified as Shahid, who along with his two accomplices had allegedly opened fire on a police party, when they were signaled to stop near mauza Poona.

Police claimed that Shahid was wanted in 13 criminal cases and admitted to the Civil Hospital, Multan.

Police claimed to have recovered an unlicenced pistol and a snatched motorcycle from the suspect’s possession.

Published in Dawn, January 25th, 2025