LAHORE: A German tourist was manhandled and robbed of his valuables in Cantonment near the Allama Iqbal International Airport on Saturday.

Berg Florine (27) was camping near the airport when two armed men approached him and attacked. The suspects stole his expensive mobile phone, Rs5,000 in cash and a camera worth Rs500,000.

Florine submitted a complaint to the North Cantonment station house officer, stating that he was visiting Pakistan on his bicycle and had erected his tent for the night on a piece of meadow near a street.

He said around 1:30am, two men approached his tent and demanded cash.

“I told them I didn’t have any cash, but they started searching my bags,” he stated. The men discovered a bag containing valuables, including electronic devices and money.

“When they asked for the bag, I tried to escape,” Florine added.

However, one of the attackers caught him, put his hands around Florine’s throat, and punched him.

“I dropped the backpack, and they took my camera (valued at US$2000), air pods ($300), iPhone SE 2020 ($500), Rs5,000 cash, and a power bank,” Florine said. The second attacker then took his smartphone and air pods before both fled the scene.

Some passers-by took Florine to a Rangers hospital, where he received medical aid. He later informed a Dolphin Squad about the incident, but he claimed they did not help and [allegedly] demanded money instead.

North Cantonment police registered the case on the complaint of the tourist.

DIG Operation Faisal Kamran took notice of the robbery. He constituted special teams to probe the matter and arrest the suspects.

He said the police were also monitoring safe city cameras for identification of the robbers.Meanwhile, Dolphin Squad SP Shahmeer told Dawn that four of the Dolphin police personnel were suspended from service for allegedly demanding bribe from the tourist.

He said a committee was constituted to probe the matter and strict action would be taken against the personnel.

Published in Dawn, August 4th, 2024