THATTA, June 10: Four people, including three bandits, were killed in an encounter with police in village Ayub Mallah near Jhoke Sharif on Tuesday.

The dead included notorious dacoit Ghulam Nabi alias Fauji Panhwar, who carried Rs500,000 as head money, besides Rano Siyal and Sikandar Tangwani.

Police said Zulfiqar Sheikh, a trader of Golarchi, who was kidnapped by bandits, was gunned down by his captors when he tried to escape from the hideout after police laid a siege to the spot.

District Police Officer Hyderabad A.D. Khwaja and DPO investigation, Pir Farid Jan Sarhandi led the operation. The encounter lasted one hour.

The bodies had been kept at the Mirpur Bathoro police station after their autopsy was conducted at the taluka hospital Mirpur Bathoro.

The DPO told newsmen that police recovered three Kalashnikovs, one shotgun and over 1,000 cartridges from the possession of bandits.

He said police tried to seek release of the hostage through a middle man, Ayub Mallah, who had also been arrested. Police said in the meantime the hostage got panicky and attempted to escape, but was gunned down by dacoits. This led to an encounter, in which the three bandits were killed.

Besides, Ayub Mallah, the police have arrested two alleged harbourers of dacoits, Amin and Soomar Mallah.

A heavy contingent of police from Hyderabad district besides Taluka Police Officer of Sujawal and Mirpur Bathoro, took part in the operation. No one from the police side was injured.

Police recovered a chit from the pocket of Zulfiqar Sheikh’s dress, containing a message that if he was killed his body should be handed over to his sister in Korangi, Karachi, and his children admitted to a Madressah.

Police said Fauji Panhwar and his gang had made the lives of innocent people miserable in the Thatta district for the last couple of years.

Earlier he used to be an accomplice of Ali Khoso but parted ways and formed his own gang.

He had kidnapped many people of Hyderabad, Thatta and Badin districts for ransom.