PESHAWAR, Dec 19: Two teams have been constituted to probe the murder of Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Bannu, and his driver and an investigator has said the official might have been killed in a botched kidnap attempt.

The investigator said that while police were not discounting anything, there was high probability that the perpetrators intended to kidnap the two men without knowing their identity.

He said there had been a spate of kidnappings, carjackings and robberies on the main road in Matani area in the suburbs of Peshawar, involving a gang led by an outlaw, Shamim.The ringleader, a fugitive believed to be currently residing in Akakhel, was seen in Darra Adamkhel on the morning of the killing.

Police now seem to discard the theory that the DIG had been a victim of target killing. They also seem to rule out a report that the police official’s vehicle had been waylaid by another car which had been following them for some distance.

There are no witnesses to the incident that occurred at around 11.45pm and both the DIG and his driver Amir Nawaz Khan died on the spot.

Police officials said the gang had fired at the passing vehicle from the right side in darkness, apparently after failing to stop it.

The vehicle was without a strobe light, bearing a police registration plate. The DIG was in civilian clothes. He was on his way from Bannu to Peshawar.

Two teams led by Senior Superintendent of Police, Operations, Iftikhar Ahmad, and SSP, Investigations, Qazi Jamilur Rehman, have been formed to investigate into the murder. The DIG’s body was sent to his native Lahore for burial after his funeral prayers.