LAHORE, June 30: Police have failed to arrest incidents of dacoity and robbery, especially outside banks and commercial centres.

On the other hand, murders on resistance during crime against property are on the rise. Despite repeated warnings by the highups, no significant progress has so far been made by the police to arrest the situation.

In the first six months of this year, around 450 dacoity and robbery cases were reported. Of them, 140 incidents occurred in Model Town division police, 127 in Sadar division, 84 in city division and 86 in Cantonment police division.

Fifty per cent of the total registered cases of dacoity and robbery are claimed to have been solved. Solving these cases, is an assignment of the Police Investigation Wing but the highups are reportedly not satisfied with the working of operations and preventions on its failure to control the increasing rate of this kind of crime.

In the period under review, some one dozen people had fallen a prey to gangs operating outside banks. The victims were deprived of cash worth millions of rupees by gangsters outside banks or other commercial centres.

Two brothers were deprived of Rs3.2 million at Samanabad Morr on Thursday when they were on their after drawing the amount from a bank.

A week earlier to this incident, two dacoity incidents were reported on Kashmir Road falling in the jurisdiction of Civil Lines police. In both the incidents, the victims had drawn the amount from the same bank.

According to the other cases, Naseem was deprived of Rs50,000 in Riwaz Garden on March 5, Khalid of Rs117,000 in Old Anarkali on March 17, Waheed of Rs200,000 in Gowalmandi on April 16 and the same day Ms Shazia was deprived of $11,O00 on The Mall. Two gunmen looted Rs 75,000 from Bashir in Hanjarwal on May 7, two armed men snatched around Rs100,000 from Mustafa in Naulakha on June 5, three robbers deprived Rehman of Rs900,000 in Shalamar on June 14, Rs150,000 were taken away from Zubair by two armed men in Cavalry Ground on June 26.

A man was shot at and wounded on Lytton Road in May and two gangsters took away Rs2 million drawn from a bank and on June 29 an employee of the Civil Aviation Authority was shot dead by two robbers in Model Town.

Sources say the police have always been unable to control the robberies outside banks and other commercial centres. The police blame bank officials or customers for inviting trouble. They say the police claim that banks and customers do not follow the Shops and Establishment Ordinance and inform them in advance about a transaction.

The sources say three types of gangs have been operating outside the banks. The first type of the gangsters have links to bank officials. Members of the second type of gangs visit banks in the guise of customers and chase people leaving the banks with huge amounts. The third type of the gang wait outside banks and follow customers leaving with a briefcase or a handbag.

Senior police officers believe there was no concept of robberies outside the banks before the 90s. In 1992, Raja Omair, son of a retired major who started his criminal career by committing petty thefts, introduced the robberies outside the banks, they say.

Raja was killed in an encounter with the police in the late 90s. However, his gang was later headed by Shahzad, alias Kala, who was arrested many times but was released either on bail or after serving jail terms, started committing robberies outside the banks. No other member of the gang has so far been arrested.

Another gang is headed by Zameer, alias Cheeta, of Mughalpura. He was too arrested on different occasions but he secured his release either on bail or after completing sentences.

Several police teams had been set up in the past to bust gangs of dacoits but they met with no success. For instance, the incident involving Ms Shazia, who was deprived of US dollars after leaving a money changer on The Mall, was recorded in a camera installed at a nearby shop. The teams working on the case have not yet found any clue to the gangsters.

Meanwhile, there has been an abnormal increase in murders on resistance during robberies in the city.

Some 21 people have been killed and over 50 injured on resistance by robbers in the first six months.

Those killed included businessmen, household women, watchmen, traders and people from other walks of life and those injured included women, children, teachers and government officials.

Following is the chronology of those killed by the robbers on resistance. 1) Jan-5: Two gunmen killed Usman in Gowalmandi. 2) Jan-6: Three robbers shot dead Ms Shamim Akhtar in Nishtar Colony. 3) Jan-18: Four gunmen shot dead a security guard at a jeweller’s shop in Defence. 4) Jan-25: Internet cafe owner Mohammad Iqbal was gunned down by two robbers in Islampura. 5) Jan-28: An AG office employee Abdul Majeed was killed by three gangsters in Gowalmandi. 6) March-21: Four gunmen shot dead Nawab Din in the Factory Area. 7) March-30: One Tanveer was killed by three robbers in Mangamandi. 8) March-31: Bank officer Khalid Bazmi was killed by four dacoits in Allama Iqbal Town. 9) April-2: Six dacoits shot dead watchmen Zaman and Matloob in South Cantonment. 10) April-7: Trader Nadeem was killed by two robbers in Badami Bagh. 11) May-6: Expatriate Tauqeer Butt was shot dead by two robbers in Johar Town. 12) May-8: Two robbers killed policeman Irshad in Sabzazar. 13) May-22: Housemaid Shazia Tahir was shot dead by four gunmen in the Factory Area. 14) May-23: Trader Mohammad Saeed was shot dead by a man in Nawankot. 15) May-28: Prize bond dealer Mohammad Asghar was killed by two armed men in Old Anarkali. 16) June-6: Trader Allah Rakha was shot dead by two robbers in Nawankot. 17) June-8: Four armed men killed security guard Ramzan in Defence. 18) June-9: Robbers looted a house and set it on fire which burnt house servant Rustam Ali in Gulshan Ravi. 19) June-10: Aasia and her son Faizan (12) were killed in their house in Baghbanpura while cash and gold jewellery worth over Rs2 million were found missing. Her two relatives were later arrested who confessed to the crime. 20) June-29: An employee of the Civil Aviation Authority Muzammal Husain was shot dead by two robbers in Model Town. —Asif Shahzad