LANDI KOTAL, May 4: Almas Storikhel, who had killed three brothers of a goldsmith family and a woman in revenge for the alleged kidnapping of his two daughters-in-law in Peshawar in 1997, was murdered over a family feud near Bara in Khyber Agency on Sunday.

Almas Storikhel was recently released on bail and was residing in Bargai Hakim Khan village, some 25 kilometres southwest of Bara, sources in the Bara Tehsildar office told this correspondent, without giving details as to who secured his release on bail. The tehsildar could not be contacted for comments.

He was attacked by Shamar Khan and his men, residents of Zhob Din Kallay, near his house when he was coming back from a mosque in the village. He died on the spot.

Almas Storikhel got notoriety in June 1997 when he and his son Jan Storikhel kidnapped and killed three brothers and a girl of a goldsmith family of Ganj locality in Peshawar to avenge the alleged kidnapping of his two daughters-in-law.

It was alleged that the two women of Storikhels, who had fled from their house, went to a shop of Javed in a goldsmith market to dispose of some of their jewellery. A man had allegedly passed the information to Storikhel that his daughters-in-law had illicit relations with one of the three brothers.

Acting in revenge, Almas Storikhel, his son Jan and other men raided the house of Moham-mad Ayub and kidnapped his three sons Javed, Pervez and Iqbal, and a minor girl of the family. The three brothers were later killed in cold blood, while the girl was released.

Storikhel and his men later kidnapped and killed a woman, Jamila, resident of Hashtnagri, who, it was alleged, had facilitated Storikhel’s daughters-in-law’s escape from their home.

No trace of Storikhel’s missing daughters-in-law could be found to date. Almas Storikhel, later, surrendered himself to the Khyber Agency political administration.