FAISALABAD, Sept 15: The cases of car and motorcycle theft/snatching are on the rise in urban and rural areas of the district. Areas of People’s Colony D Ground, Madina Town, eight bazaars of Clock Tower particularly Kutchery Bazaar, Aminpur Bazaar and Rail Bazaars and Jinnah Park have become favourite hunting grounds for outlaws.

On Thursday nine motorcycles and three cars were stolen while six bikes were driven away at gunpoint .

On Friday, outlaws drove away four motorcycles at gunpoint and lifted as many besides stealing a car.

According to the last month police record, five cars and 96 motorcycles were snatched, 53 cars and 180 motorcycles were stolen.

Requesting anonymity, a police officer told Dawn that police had been trying its level best to control the crime.

Sources said some policemen had connections with gangs involved in vehicle theft and snatching.

They said a couple of months ago City Police Officer Bilal Siddique Kamyana was informed that former SHO of Sargodha Road sub-inspector Ahmed Munil Shah was hand in glove with car snatchers and he also arranged return of a stolen car.

The CPO initiated a probe into the issue and appointed SSP (operations) Sadiq Ali the inquiry officer.

During inquiry, the SHO was found guilty but he was just transferred from Sargodha Road police station as a `punishment’. Now he is serving as the head of CIA police station, an entity being equipped by the Inspector General of Punjab Police Haji Habibur Rehman to net hardened criminals.

SSP (operations) Sadiq Ali said police had planned to launch a campaign against people plying vehicles without proper registration plates.

He said it had been observed that elements involved in snatching of motorcycles and cars were using vehicles having no registration plates.

Regarding inquiry against former SHO Shah, he said Shah had been found guilty and findings of the inquiry had been forwarded to the quarters concerned for action.