A man and his two sons were shot dead in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Mardan district, police and rescue officials said on Thursday, adding that the five suspects had fled the scene.

Rescue 1122 Mardan spokesperson Mohammad Abbas Shah told Dawn.com that the incident took place on Wednesday and that a case was registered at Shahbaz Garhi police station on the complaint of the victim’s sister.

“Five suspects opened fire on the victims, Qubad Khan and his sons, in a field in the Gariala area of Mardan,” Shah said. “The victim and his young sons died at the scene, while women nearby were able to narrowly escape.”

He added that the suspects were able to flee the scene after the incident.

According to the police report, seen by Dawn.com, the suspects were charged under sections 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon), 149 (every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of a common object), 302 (punishment for murder) and 324 (attempted murder) of the Pakistan Penal Code.

Earlier this week, six people, including three women, lost their lives in an exchange of fire over a family feud in the Khatko Pul area of Peshawar, according to a Rescue 1122 spokesperson.

Seven people were reported to have been shot in the exchange of fire between two families, six of whom died on the spot.

The deceased have been identified as Fazl Amin, Hazrat Amin, Ahmed, along with three women. Another woman was reported to be critically injured and has been shifted to Lady Reading Hospital.