SARGODHA, March 2: Influential politicians and policemen used to patronize the four criminals who were killed in an encounter at Chak 40-SB on Wednesday last, Dawn learnt on Saturday.

A gang of over two dozen hardened criminals led by ring leader Shahzad Zafar Gujjar of Bhangranwala, Gujrat, had reportedly commited heinous crimes under the patronage of politicians who paid them handsome amount.

According to the Karjanwala (Gujrat) police record, the gang had murdered 20 people, including four guards of former Gujrat MPA Ghulam Sarwar Bhooch on Feb 3. They had recently received Rs3 million as ransom.

The culprits had also snatched a tractor from a local landlord and in a bid to escape opened fire and hurled ‘inerger grenade’ on police. The policemen however remained unhurt.

The US-made inerger grenades were used against Russia in the Afghan war in 1989 and were not available in the open market. The grenade has the power to penetrate eight inches into a steel wall while its fire cannot be extinguished within half an hour.

Police sources said that ring leader Shahzad Zafar and Muhammad Arif Rajput of Gujrat, Faisal alias Mutial of Kakrali and Muhammad Tariq Jat of Sarai Alamgir were on their way by a car (8973-GAT) stolen from Sargodha about a month ago. They were stopped by a motorcycle squad, but they opened fire on them. Luckily, they escaped ‘unhurt’ and immediately aired the message.

Four police parties headed by CIA SP Muhammad Aslam Ghori, City DSP Abdul Hameed Niazi, Saddar DSP Karim Nawaz Khan and the Sillanwali headquarters DSP reached the spot and killed the four outlaws in the encounter.

Although police had recovered three hand-grenades, as many Kalashnikovs, a G-3 rifle and 530 cartridges, the outlaws continued ‘firing’ on police for several hours.

Police handed over two magazines, 72 cartridges, three mobile phones and a stolen car to their owners.

When asked, the Sargodha police could not satisfy how they identified the deceased outlaws who had no documents on them. The police also did not tell about a wireless set recovered from the culprits.

On the condition of anonymity, insiders told this correspondent that some police officers had also been using them for personal gains. They developed some differences over the distribution of booty and got them killed in the staged encounter, they said.

A majority of mobile squad policemen had also provided shelter to outlaws besides the influential politicians of the Gujrat district, they said.

Talking to Dawn, SSP Dr Arif Mushtaq said the Sargodha police had killed the outlaws in an geniune encounter, but luckily no policemen sustained wounds.