KARACHI: Robbers looted a van carrying cell phones worth over Rs10 million on Sharea Faisal on Saturday night, police said on Sunday.

Ferozabad SHO Raja Zulfiqar Haider said that the van was carrying cell phones from a mobile market in Saddar to their head office in PECHS on Saturday night. When it took a turn at Fauzia Wahab flyover, around seven suspects travelling in a Suzuki van, rickshaw and two motorbikes intercepted it. They hijacked the van at gunpoint, took away the valuables, and left the driver on Sharea Quaideen near Nursery.

The SHO said the estimated value of looted cell phones was stated to be over Rs10 million.

He hinted at the possibility that the suspects were chasing it from the Saddar mobile market. The investigators are trying to obtain CCTV footage to get clues about the possible identity of the suspects. The officer said that safety precautions were not taken by the firm concerned for transporting valuables.

Separately, Karachi Electronics Dealers Association president Mohammed Rizwan Irfan told the media that this was 14th such robbery incident. He urged the inspector general of police to provide protection to traders.

Van found

The SHO said the company’s van was traced with the help of a tracker and recovered from the remit of the Tipu Sultan police station.

Karachi Electronics Dealers Association urges IGP to provide security

SSP-East (Investigation) Ameer Saud Magsi said that the police had launched an investigation after lodging an FIR and details were being gathered.

“Different aspects of investigation are being accounted for and under process,” the SSP said, adding: “We are hopeful we will trace out the gang and bring the culprits to justice and recover the looted items.”

Meanwhile, complainant Adeel Ahmed stated in the FIR that he had been working at Leopard Courier Company at its head office in PECHS, Block-6 as a driver for the last eight-nine months.

He said he took ‘34 shipments’ from the Star Mobile Mall in Saddar in the company’s Suzuki loading pickup at around 10:15pm on Feb 10. When he reached near Fauzia Wahab Bridge at around 10:30pm, two suspects travelling in a Suzuki van tried to hit their vehicle. In the meantime, one person riding a rickshaw came in front of his van and blocked the road while four suspects riding two motorcycles also emerged there. Two suspects came close to him and pulled him out from the van at gunpoint and pushed him into the rickshaw.

They also drove his van and after travelling some distance, they took away ‘34 shipments’ from his van and put it in their Suzuki van and dropped him near Nursery Bridge.

The complainant said he went to his office by foot and informed the officers about the incident.

Published in Dawn, February 12th, 2024