KARACHI, May 11: A young assistant sub-inspector and a constable were shot dead in an attack by armed motorcyclists in the Sultanabad area on Wednesday, officials said.

They said 25-year-old ASI Manzoor Ahmed was patrolling in the area on a motorcycle along with police constable Saleem Khan in the second half of the day. They stopped near a roadside tea stall in Sultanabad.

“They were having tea at the New Quetta Madina Hotel near Khyber Petrol Pump in Sultanabad,” said Sub-Inspector Naeem Ahmed, the SHO of the Jackson police station.

“According to witnesses, two men on a motorbike emerged and stopped close to the two policemen. They were wearing helmets.”

One of the riders opened fire targeting ASI Manzoor. The assailant also fired at constable Saleem when he tried to retaliate with his sub-machine gun, he added.

“The ASI was hit by four bullets in the head and face. He died on the spot while the wounded constable was shifted to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, where he succumbed to his wounds during treatment. Doctors said he suffered two bullet wounds in the chest and thigh,” the area SHO said.

He said that the ASI had been posted at the Lalazar police post for the past eight months.

“It's simply an incident of targeted killing and we have not found any personal motive behind it. ASI Manzoor had played a role in arresting several criminals operating in the Sultanabad area and he was also the complainant of a case registered against a known criminal, Zain-ul-Abideen, who was later killed in an encounter with the Rangers,” he added.

The victim was father of two and lived in Kalakot police lines in Lyari and originally hailed from Mansehra.

The police registered a case (FIR 289/2011) under Sections 302 (premeditated murder), 324 (attempted murder) and 34 (common intention) of the Pakistan Penal Code against unidentified persons on behalf of the state.