MUZAFFARGARH: Layyah city police on Tuesday busted a honey-trap gang, registered a case against its six members and arrested its woman member.

The case was registered under sections 384, 355, 292, 342, 379, 148 and 149 of Pakistan Penal Code against the gangsters who were involved in honey traps, extortion and blackmailing.

Complainant Abdul Aziz, a businessman dealing in tractors and machinery, stated in the first information report that he received a call from a woman named Abida Parveen, who claimed she had a tractor for sale and invited him to her house.

Abdul Aziz and his friend Zahoor Abbas arrived at the specified location, where Abida contacted them and got into their car, directing them to her home in Housing Colony Layyah 1. On arrival, they found three or four men already present.

Abdul Aziz alleged that suspects Makhdoom Saifullah, Muhammad Munawar, Nawab Ali Raza and two unidentified accomplices threatened and tortured them, forcing them to strip. They then robbed Abdul Aziz of Rs32,000 and Zahoor Abbas of Rs10,000 and made explicit videos.

Aziz claimed that the next day, Makhdoom Saifullah brought Layyah city police officials and accused them of sexually assaulting Abida Parveen and demanded Rs2 million extortion.

The city police officials left, and the suspects contacted the victims’ family members, struck a deal and extorted Rs750,000 from them. The gang then returned Abdul Aziz’s car.

Abdul Aziz approached Layyah District Police Officer Asadul Rehman, who formed a special team to arrest the suspects and ordered the registration of a case against the gang. The victims claimed that the gang had made explicit videos and pictures of them and forced them to sign an agreement.

The DPO said stern action would be taken against the gang, and arrests would be made soon. The main suspect, Abida Parveen, has already been arrested, and during interrogation, she confessed to her crime, leading to the recovery of the extorted cash.

Landlord held: An influential landlord allegedly cut off the legs of a donkey in the Rampur area of Jatoi tehsil here on Tuesday.

The police registered a case against landlord Sajjad Hussain and arrested him following a complaint by the donkey’s owner.

According to the first information report, complainant Bashir Ahmad said his donkey’s legs were severed by Sajjad when he found the donkey grazing in his field.

The Jatoi police registered the case under section 429 of the Pakistan Penal Code (Mischief by killing or maiming cattle, etc, of any value or any animal of the value of fifty rupees).

The police then contacted livestock officials for the donkey’s treatment. The livestock team arrived at the scene and began treating the injured donkey.

The complainant claimed that his donkey had been seriously injured, resulting in a loss of Rs30,000. Livestock officials said the treatment would continue until the fractures were fully healed.

Published in Dawn, July 24th, 2024