KARACHI: Police on Monday claimed to have busted a ‘white Corolla gang’ by arresting its five members who were allegedly involved in the recent killing of a woman and causing injuries to her daughter on the National Highway during an encounter and an attempt to loot Chinese nationals.

DIG-East Azfar Mahesar told a press conference that the father of one of the held suspects was also a criminal who had shot dead a police inspector.

“The white Corolla gang has been a major criminal threat in Malir district, involved in a range of serious offences,” he said.

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Flanked by Malir SSP Kashif Aftab Abbasi, the East zone police chief said their criminal record included ‘multiple murder cases, showing their violent and ruthless nature’.

In addition to those cases, the gang had been involved in numerous armed robberies and high-profile thefts, he added. “Their operations have significantly impacted the community, creating widespread fear and insecurity,” he observed.

DIG says the gang was also involved in looting Chinese nationals

The gang’s involvement in sophisticated criminal activities has made them a primary target for the law enforcement efforts.

“This crackdown by Malir district police represents a crucial step towards dismantling the gang and restoring safety to the area,” claimed the DIG.

He said the police and federal intelligence agency had arrested the five suspects who had been involved in looting citizens drawing cash from banks and snatching cars at gunpoint during the last few months.

The gang had intercepted Chinese on July 2 in Bin Qasim in order to snatch over Rs20 million from them. The suspects snatched a weapon from their guard and resorted to indiscriminate firing on the foreigners’ vehicle, but they remained safe, he added.

He said that members of the gang were roaming in a white Corolla and riding motorcycles in Gulshan-i-Hadeed near a bank on July 7 when a citizen informed police. They resorted to indiscriminate firing on the policemen when they chased them. During an exchange of firing, one rickshaw was damaged while a passerby woman travelling in a car was killed and her teenage daughter injured, he said.

The police officer said the gang comprised of 10 members. One held suspect Aziz Jalbani was involved in a double murder case on Sharea Faisal in 2021 while his father Wahid Bux alias Fauji Jalbani was involved in the murder of police sub-inspector Raheem Shah.

Another held suspect Aftab Ali Chachro also had a past criminal record at Gharo in Thatta district. Three other held suspects were Ghulam Qadir, Nadir Khan and Khadim Husain, he said.

Police claimed to have seized four pistols and one SMG from them. He said the suspects belonged to different districts of Sindh. Sometimes they tended to go into hiding in Balochistan and sometimes in the riverine area of Sindh after committing crimes in Karachi.

Published in Dawn, July 30th, 2024