TANK: No clue has been traced to whereabouts of a senior official of Federal Board of Revenue, who along with his three relatives, was kidnapped by unidentified gunmen from their hujra in Murtaza village in Tank district on Wednesday night.

The security forces, police and Levies personnel conducted a joint search operation on the outskirts of Murtaza village and adjoining South Waziristan district’s localities to recover missing additional commissioner FBR Mohammad Riaz and his relatives. The joint operation was led by regional police officer Peroz Shah.

The police officer said they were facing hardships in tracing the missing persons as their mobile phones were with the kidnappers and out of range due to their presence in mountainous area.

On Friday, RPO Peroz Shah held a meeting with DPO South Waziristan Attiqullah Wazir, and DPO Tank Mohammad Arif. The RPO later went to house of missing FBR officer and met his father and other family members. The RPO was told that they had no enmity with anyone nor had they received any threat.

Mr Shah assured them of early release of the kidnapped official and other relatives.

Meanwhile, a search operation has been going on in Gardaw and Gomal Zam Dam areas for last two days to trace the missing persons.

Mohammad Ejaz, brother of the kidnapped officer, reported to the Gomal police station that his brother, who was serving in FBR Islamabad, was present in his hujra when unidentified armed men camouflaged in security forces uniform reached there.

He told police that the armed men on the pretext of search first collected the cell phones and arms from the inmates and then locked them in a room of the hujra before kidnapping.

He said the armed men then whisked away Riaz, his uncle Mumtaz Khan, his son Mudassir, an official of FC, and a guest, to an unidentified location.

The FBR officer had come to attend funeral prayer of his mother. No group has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping.

Published in Dawn, April 27th, 2019