MULTAN, April 10: The railway police claimed on Thursday to have tracked down the swindlers who allegedly used to loot passengers by delivering intoxicated food items to them at platforms.

Speaking at a press conference, railways SP Khalid Farooq said a number of vendors of Khanewal junction were also involved in the crime.

He said the railway police unearthed the gang on the information provided by a resident of Jhang, Jameel, who was nabbed by the police a couple of days ago at the Khanpur station while selling intoxicated biscuits to a passenger, Ahsan, of Tezro Express.

He said the information extracted from Jameel was corroborated with the testimony of some other passengers who were looted after falling unconscious on taking adulterated food items especially tea at the Khanewal station.

The SP said Banaras Shah, Farzand Ali, Yousaf and Shakoor were travelling by Awam Express from Sadiqabad to Lahore a few days ago. They took tea at Khanewal and were later noticed lying unconscious by other passengers near the Sahiwal railway station. They remained hospitalized for four days. On regaining senses, they identified the owner of stall No 23 of the Khanewal station, Abdul Rahman, and his helpers, Abbas and Shafi, as the persons who served them with intoxicated tea.

He said similarly Saeed Khan, Ajmal, Afzal, Abdullah Khan, Toheed, Fayyaz, Nazia, Khurshid Begum and Sajjad fell unconscious while travelling for Lahore by Awam Express when they took tea at the Khanewal station. They also remained hospitalized for two days. They identified vendors Zulfiqar and Saeed and their employees, Shakeel and Akram, as the culprits. In both the incidents, the victims were deprived of their valuables.

The SP said the police had arrested all of them after registering a case. He said the police would, however, also explore the possibility of business jealousy among the vendors that some of them might hatch a conspiracy against those who had been arrested.

He said the police had also arrested Khushi Mohammed from the Samma Satta railway station red-handed while stealing valuables of Allama Iqbal Express passengers Tufail and Waseem after administering them intoxicated meal.

The SP said some 45 constables would soon be recruited in the Multan circle to eradicate crimes at railway stations.