RAWALPINDI, Jan 30:  A local merchant was robbed of Rs850,000 by two gunmen, while another was deprived of Rs185,000 by four unidentified robbers in a heavily populated Banni police area, police said on Monday.

According to details, Sheikh Mohammad Yousuf, a tea merchant was robbed of Rs850,000 by two unidentified gunmen. Sheikh Kashif, the son of the robbery victim told Dawn that his father was getting out of rickshaw and paying fare to its driver when two unidentified motorbike riders appeared on the scene and took his father at gunpoint.

He said: “One of the robbers picked up the cash bag, lying on the back seat of rickshaw while the other one snatched purse from my father and escaped”.

In the other incident, a local businessman was looted when Rs185,000 were snatched from Yousuf Shahzad, the owner of Sajjad Khan & company located a few metres away from the Banni police station. According to details, he was sitting at his shop when four unidentified persons riding on two motorbikes entered the shop and pulled out their pistols.

He said they held him and his employees at gunpoint and forced him to give up the cash. He said the robbers snatched Rs185,000 and two cell phones in addition to taking away two cartons of milk pack and escaped on their motorbikes.

He said though the robbery victim informed the Banni police immediately after the incident took place, they took more than three hours to reach the scene of crime. The victim said the robbers were young and seemed to be in their 20s.