Third policeman martyred in District Central within a month

Another policeman has been martyred in Karachi’s District Central. He is the third cop to have been gunned down in the district within a month. The incident appears to have been a targeted killing, but police are yet to confirm it as the investigation is ongoing. According to details, an unidentified suspect opened fire on the policeman near the UBL Sports Complex on Rashid Minhas Road in the Jauharabad police station’s jurisdiction.

The suspect escaped with the cop’s weapon and motorbike, leaving behind his own motorbike and bag. Police found mobile phones, wrist watches, a wallet, a perfume bottle, a face wash bottle, some documents and some clothes in the bag.

The wounded policeman was first taken by rickshaw to a nearby hospital, then to a private hospital on National Stadium Road, where he succumbed to his injuries. The deceased was identified as 38-year-old constable Shabbir Ahmed, a resident of Gulshan-e-Hadeed who was posted at the Nazimabad investigation wing.

Officials said the victim had suffered multiple bullets to the legs, arms and chest. They said the police had gathered 10 bullet casings from the crime scene.

District Central police chief SSP Zeeshan Siddiqui told the media that the constable was going towards Gulshan-e-Iqbal when the incident occurred. The officer said the suspect escaped with the cop’s weapon and motorbike, abandoning his own motorbike.

He said the suspect’s bag might have fallen off while he was fleeing, adding that it would become clear during the investigation whom the bag belongs to. SSP Siddiqui said the police are investigating the incident from different angles with the help of CCTV camera footage, adding that the constable was wearing a jacket over his uniform, and that the incident seems targeted. He said the police in the city seem to be under threat these days.

Karachi police chief Addl IGP Javed Alam Odho told the media that 10 or 11 empty shells have been recovered from the crime scene. He said that investigations into target killings of police officers have been prioritised, he adding that those involved in martyring cops would be arrested soon.

An eyewitness said he was sitting on a raised platform by the roadside when he saw the policeman passing by on a motorbike, adding that another motorcyclist had attacked him. “The attacker fired at the policeman as he approached. The attacker was alone and wearing a mask.”

The witness said the attacker shouted abuses and fired several shots at the policeman. He said the attacker snatched the cop’s pistol and bag, adding that the attacker abandoned his motorbike and took the policeman’s motorbike to escape.

Police said the motorbike that the suspect had arrived on does not bear a vehicle registration number plate. A video clip of the incident recorded by a passer-by on his mobile phone has also been circulating.

The video shows the attacker fleeing on a motorbike after the shooting. The attacker and the injured police officer can be seen grappling immediately after the firing. The attacker’s motorbike failed to start and fell over, according to the clip, so the attacker escaped on the policeman’s motorbike. The injured constable can be seen lying on the road while the attacker fled towards the Lyari River.

Six policemen have been killed in the city this year, while three of them, including the Counter Terrorism Department’s DSP Ali Raza, were martyred in District Central within a month. Meanwhile, expressing sorrow over Wednesday’s incident, Home Minister Ziaul Hassan Lanjar has sought details from SSP Siddiqui, ordering him to mobilise the police to arrest the suspect.