ISLAMABAD: After it was revealed that a Counter Terrorism Force (CTF) official was allegedly involved in the robbery and shootout in I-8 on Saturday that killed three people and injured three others, the inspector general of police (IGP) Islamabad has formed an inquiry committee and suspended two CTF officials.

Deputy Commissioner Hamza Shafqaat told Dawn that according to the information he had, one of the alleged robbers was a CTF official but he had previously been suspended.

“The IGP has already established an inquiry committee so we will inform the committee about that. However, if the committee insists, we are willing to do a judicial inquiry,” he said.

Senator Rehman Malik, who chairs the Senate Standing Committee on Interior, has also taken notice of the incident and sought information from the chief commissioner and the police. He also said the district administration should carry out a judicial inquiry.

Three people were killed and three others injured during a shootout between police and people suspected of robbing a man at an ATM in I-8. The police said that the alleged robbers were on a motorcycle and held the victim at gunpoint.

IGP forms inquiry committee and suspends two CTF officials; senator takes notice

The victim saw a police vehicle and shouted for help. The police then chased the alleged suspects as they tried to escape.

The police said the robbers shot at people inside cars they attempted to steal as well as the police, who retaliated.

A bystander, a police official, one of the alleged robbers and two people who were in the cars were injured. The deceased were identified as Osama Mehmood, Amir Haider and Mohammad Ashraf, while the injured were Faisal, Shahryar and Constable Ibrar.

It was later revealed that a CTF police official was involved in the robbery as well and died in the crossfire.

IGP Islamabad Mohammad Amir Zulfikar Khan therefore suspended a CTF line officer and moharrar, and established an inquiry committee led by Assistant Inspector General Haroon Joya and made up of CTF Superintendent of Police (SP) Farooq Amjad Buttar and Special Branch SP Liyaqat Hayat Niazi.

According to a letter issued by the Senate interior committee, Senator Malik has taken notice of the involvement of a CTF official in the robbery in I-8 Markaz.The chief commissioner and IGP have been directed to submit a detailed report that includes the name and information about the police official allegedly involved in the robbery, as well as his official record with the police department.

The letter asked how the official was recruited if he was involved in criminal activity, how he was cleared for recruitment by the Special Branch in Islamabad, where he was posted and who his immediate officer was, whether he was on duty at the time of the robbery and if not, what he wrote in the roznamacha before leaving the station, and sought information about any past crimes.

The letter added: “Moreover the chairman committee has desired that judicial inquiry should be ordered to probe the matter and a detailed report may be reached to the office of undersigned by Monday midday as the matter will be taken up in the meeting of the committee on 10th March, 2020.”

According to the FIR of the incident, in which Industrial Area Station House Officer (SHO) Mohammad Ashraf Rana is the complainant, a young man came out of an ATM while the SHO was on his patrol and told him he had been robbed of Rs10,000 by two people.

He said in the FIR that the police chased them, “due to which the robbers opened fire and tried to flee on a motorbike.”

The bike slipped, so they went on to Tipu Sultan Road and tried to stop a vehicle. When the driver did not stop, they opened fire, injuring four people and killing one.

They tried to stop another vehicle but the driver removed the key and tried to run away.

The robbers then fired at him, killing him, while a robber was also injured in the firing and later died, the FIR said.

Published in Dawn, March 9th, 2020