Action against criminals in Sindh

Sukkur Police arrested 14 notorious robbers during a routine patrol

Sukkur: The ever-increasing street crime incidents in Sindh’s largest cities, Karachi and Hyderabad, have people worried. The people seemed to have lost all hope and can be seen claiming that ‘there is no one to catch the criminals’, they allege that the police have given free rein to criminals and robbers; they can rob whomever they want, and kill people who resist them.

Five people were killed during street crimes in Karachi recently, 31 motorcycles were snatched and stolen while 13 cars were stolen. Four incidents of house robbery were reported. The robbers did not stop there, armed suspects entered a school and robbed the teachers and staff, creating mass panic. This paints a very bleak picture for the residents of Karachi and shows the inefficiency of police officials to ensure law and order in the city.

Street crimes are on the rise in Hyderabad, the second largest city of Sindh. Meanwhile, the link roads including the national highway, districts of Khairpur, Shikarpur, Kashmore, Ghotki, and Jacobabad have high incidents of robbery, and kidnapping for ransom. This is especially true for Shikarpur and Kashmore.  Dacoits seem to be active, and frequent. The districts have witnessed a sharp rise in such incidents. As a result, people usually avoid traveling to the rural areas of Shikarpur and Kashmore at night. The robbers have ruined people’s lives.

The Modus Operandi of street criminals operating in Karachi is distinctly different from the crimes within the interior Sindh. There gangs operating in Karachi, Afghan refugees from are mostly involved Karachi’s street crimes. Other gangs involved in Karachi’s criminal activities are not residents of the city. As the criminals are not from Karachi, they carry out robberies, and snatchings with reckless abandon. They have no fear that about being recognised.

The criminals are not restricted to just street crimes, in Karachi and Hyderabad, they have now started house robberies as well, the robbers are rapidly updating their profiles, as the most notorious and dangerous ‘leaders of the gang’. This is a ploy to gain notoriety to inculcate fear in the hearts of defenseless citizens, who are at the mercy of the robbers.

Criminals are updating their MO, getting more violent and taking risks, their recent MO is taking families hostage, in order to extort more money and frighten the citizens into submission. Their cruelty knows no bounds, ‘give money or be killed’ is their new motto. Surprisingly, some women can be seen supporting the cruel robbers, they are probably suffering from ‘Stockholm Syndrome’, but the ground reality is very bleak in terms of law and order.

The trend of females entering premises and calling their accomplices is not new, many house robberies in Karachi and Sindh have taken place this way. On one pretext or another, a female enters a house, assesses the situation, and then calls her ‘colleagues’ to do the deed, the criminals are prepared for any eventuality, and they open fire without a second thought.

Street crimes in the interior part of Sindh are different. There are places called ‘kaccha’ areas or riverine where they reside. This is their domain, where there is no rule of law, only the rule of the ‘notorious gang’ of robbers. Passenger buses are at high risk as they are the likely target. The busses traveling from Karachi to Lahore or Peshawar are usually held up, with passengers robbed on gunpoint or taken hostage, for ransom. Small vehicles are also not exempt from the bandits, who use the elemnt of surpise to spring up, with the most sophisticated weapon in their hands, brandishing it recklessly unless they are given what they are asking for, goods, wares and money.

In case the driver speeds up instead of stopping, the bandits do not hesitate to open fire. Many drivers and passengers have lost their lives in such incidents.

In Sindh, the bandits also call the villagers on their mobiles pretending to be a woman. As is the nature of man, hearing the voice of a woman excites the villagers and they are encouraged to come to a remote area, where they are kidnapped, this Modus Operandi is aptly named ‘honey trap’.

The theft of motorcycles is common in the urban areas of interior Sindh, but snatching of mobiles at gunpoint, and robbery during a cash withdrawal at the ATM is a norm.

The events of Sukkur, the third largest city of Sindh, has a modicum of law and order, and the police has some control over street crimes.

The Sukkur Police, (as compared to other cities) have something to celebrate as they did manage to achieve some degree of success in combating crimes. During the month of January 2023, there have been 13 encounters; which resulted in the killing of 3 of the most dangerous robbers, while 14 were arrested.

The strict action by the police has yielded results, as the incidents of street crimes and ATM robbers have seen a decline. House robberies, kidnapping for ransom incidents are also under control.

To date, the biggest achievement of Sukkur police came when they killed the notorious dacoits Abdul Rasool alias Kaleem Bhutto and Sohail Mirani. SSP Sukkur, Sangahar Malik told Bol News that Abdul Rasool alias Kaleem Bhutto was a big criminal. This criminal had made people’s lives miserable. He had committed crimes all across Sindh. 35 cases were registered against this him in Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur, and Baluchistan. Anti-Vehicle Lifting Cell arrested Abdul Rasool alias Kaleem Bhutto from Sindh government. A reward of one crore rupees was recommended for Abdul Rasool alias Kaleem Bhutto and his accomplice, Sohail Mirani who snatched and stole dozens of vehicles from Karachi. Karachi police had made many efforts to arrest these two dacoits, but these two criminals were very vicious and the police could not catch them.

The two robbers had arrived in Naseerabad area of Sukkur with the intention of committing an incident, during which the Sukkur police received information that a suspicious vehicle was roaming in the area. The police got into the mobile chasing them down, they opened fire and the police responded in the same way. Two robbers were seriously injured and died shortly after succumbing to their injuries. The three robbers were hiding in the area within the limits of Rohri police station, as the police on patrol arrived; the robbers opened fire in response, the police also fired. The fire exchange resulted in the death of their accomplice Yousuf who was killed by the firing of the robbers. Dacoit Yousuf Jagirani was wanted by the police in cases of robbery, snatching of a motorcycle, and robbery. Adnan and Saddam Jagirani were injured during the police encounter. They were subsequently arrested. Shakeel, Iqar Ahmed, and Zulfiqar Junejo who were injured were also arrested by the police along with their weapons.

SSP Sukkur Sangahar Malik said that, “we have directed the police teams to patrol the busy streets of the city. Keep a close watch on the link roads and the roads leading to the city from Sukkur, as there is a large area near the city, while the districts of Shikarpur, Khairpur and Ghotki are located along the border of Sukkur. A number of criminals have been arrested this month and some dacoits have been also been during patrol.”