LARKANA, Sept 11: Law enforcement personnel arrested a man suspected of being involved in target killings in Karachi after an early morning raid on a house in the town’s Sabzi Mandi area on Sunday.

The suspect, Mohammed Shafique Pathan, was taken to Karachi for interrogation.

Sources in the Rangers told Dawn that a team from Karachi went to the house of Barkat Pathan in Badah town to look for Shafiq, reportedly on the basis of information about his presence there.

The team found Sahfique’s mobile phone in the house and took into custody Barkat Pathan, a maternal cousin of the suspect.

The man led the team to late Shaman Khuhawar’s hosue in Sabzi Mandi, the sources said.

Rangers personnel who provided back-up support to the team raided the house and arrested Shafique who himself opened the door when they knocked at it.

Shafique who lives Baldia town in Karachi is said to be in his 30s. He was involved in six cases of murder and was a member of a political party’s unit-112 in Saeedabad, the sources said.

They said the suspected target killer came to Larkana two days ago when Rangers launched an operation in his area.

The raid was conducted by the team from Karachi and Rangers personnel only provided back-up support, said the Rangers’ sources.

Barkat Pathan was later released, said the sources.

Sources in Badah said that Rangers personnel had raided the house of Haji Khan Pathan in Pathan mohalla early in the morning and picked up Barkat Pathan, a labourer and son of Haji Khan Pathan who was a tailor.

Barkat’s neighbours told journalists that Shafique had been in Badah for 10 days. He moved to Larkana three days ago to live with a close relative who was married to a family of Khuhawars.

Shafique came to Badah whenever operations were launched against criminals in Karachi.

He used to sell grams and posed as a labourer.