HYDERABAD, Nov 22: The police early Friday shot dead four bandits, with a bounty worth Rs1 million offered for their heads, in an encounter in Matiari.

The bandits, killed during the encounter, have been identified as Mureed alias Bijli Khoso, Shadman alias Shado Khoso, Faizoo alias Faiz Majidano and Khair Mohammad alias Khairoo.

Mureed was the brother of one of the most wanted bandits, Major Khoso.

All of the bandits killed had bullet wounds on their chest and were apparently shot from a close range. Their bodies did not bear any other bullet injury on the rest of their bodies.

The District Police Officer (operations), A. D. Khawaja, at a briefing said that three of the accomplices of the slain bandits had managed to escape and the police were pursuing them with the help of foot-print trackers.

The DPO said that four Kalashinkovs, 10 magazines, 600 live bullets and four bags containing bullets were seized after the hour-long encounter.

None of the police official, he said, was injured or killed in the encounter.

He said that the police had received information about the presence of bandits in a mango orchard near Goth Majeedano along the National Highway.

The police force, accompanied by heavy police contingent and armoured personnel carriers had encircled the village.

The dacoits, sensing danger, tried to cross an embankment and resorted to firing, which was retaliated by the police, resulting in the killing of the four bandits.

He said that several FIRs had been lodged against them at police stations in Hyderabad, Thatta, Dadu and Sanghar.

The DPO confirmed that it was the same gang of Mureed alias Bijli Khoso that had killed SI Ghulam Mustafa Qureshi and ASI Nasir Abbas Shah, in the same area where the police had launched an operation to recover a hostage, Khalid Shah on March 15, 2001.

The bandits killed in the fresh encounter, he said, were also involved in the kidnapping of Rafiq Siddiqui and others.

The DPO said that these four dacoits were also involved with another bandit, Ali Barnani Khoso, who was involved in countless cases of kidnappings and other crimes.

Dispelling the impression that police had failed to protect the people, he said that nine out of the 11 persons kidnapped so far have been recovered. Two policemen had been killed during encounters and seven dacoits had also been shot dead.

He said that efforts were being made to recover Ashoke Thadani and Teeka Mal.

He also said that the gang of Imdad Kalhoro and Ghulam Qadir Pakhrio was also involved in cases of kidnapping.