KARACHI, Sept 24: Police raided a fire station in Korangi on Saturday, detained about two dozen officials and claimed to have seized arms ‘stored inside the government facility’, officials and police sources said.

A senior official confirmed that the police raided the fire station situated in the industrial area of the town and detained 22 officials though, he said, most of them were released after initial investigation.“Four of the detained persons are still under investigation as the police have found arms in their possession,” said DIG (East) Naeem Akram Barokha. When asked about the reason behind the raid on the local government facility, he said the police moved on a tip-off about the arms and suspects associated with the station.

The police sources, however, said the raid was conducted under the Malir SSP and the police party spent a couple of hours inside the fire station and thoroughly searched it.

“The police detained all officials present inside the station. But 18 were released after initial inquiries. The details of the arms recovered have not yet been disclosed,” said an official privy to the initial investigations.

He said the police searched different facilities inside the fire station and also looked into different equipment on their suspicions as arms carrier.