The notorious ‘White Corolla gang’ that has been involved in criminal activities in Karachi for decades has once again resurfaced, this time targeting the home of a journalist's daughter in a brazen robbery.
The gang, infamous for its involvement in house burglaries across the city, had reportedly been eliminated multiple times by police. However, their return to crime has sent waves of concern.
In the latest incident, the gang targeted the residence of journalist Asif Ali Syed’s daughter in the Model Colony area. Syed reported that his son-in-law’s family was held at gunpoint by four robbers who arrived in a white Corolla. The suspects made off with valuables, including jewellery worth millions of rupees. Despite CCTV footage capturing the entire event and clearly identifying the suspects, the police have so far been unable to apprehend the culprits.
The footage, which was also spread on social media, shows the suspects fleeing the scene in the white Corolla, which was also spotted in the Saadi Town area following the robbery.
However, despite more than two weeks passing since the crime, police have made no significant progress in tracing or arresting the suspects.
Expressed his frustration with the police, Syed lamented that despite the availability of CCTV footage clearly showing the culprits, there had been no progress. “From the very beginning, police discouraged us from going public with the case, claiming it would alert the suspects. But this was just a delaying tactic to avoid media pressure."
Korangi SSP Tauheed ur Rehman who has been handling the case was contacted multiple times for his comments but he was unavailable.
This robbery is not an isolated incident. According to a recent report by the Citizens-Police Liaison Committee (CPLC), Karachi saw 5,960 criminal incidents in August alone, including theft, snatching and robberies.
The report detailed that 150 cars were stolen and 23 snatched at gunpoint in the month. Similarly, 656 motorcycles were snatched at gunpoint and 3,385 others stolen during the same period.
Additionally, 1,737 mobile phones were snatched from citizens during August. The report also highlighted three cases of kidnapping for ransom and six cases of extortion. With over 44,000 criminal incidents reported in the first seven months of 2024, Karachi’s crime rate shows little signs of decreasing.