KOHAT, Dec 23: A murder accused was sentenced to death on Saturday, while his alleged accomplice was freed because of lack of evidence.

District and sessions judge for Kohat Shah Jehan Akhundzada also awarded a ten-year imprisonment sentence and a fine of Rs300,000 to convict Ubaidullah.

He had killed a man, Tariq, in the main bazaar in Kohat because of an old feud. Two passers-by were injured in the shootout. The judge freed the other accused, Nek Nawaz.

Meanwhile, additional district and sessions judge II Sofia Vaqar sentenced Asghar Mahmood in a robbery case to 12 months of rigorous imprisonment besides fining him Rs40,000. Two of the accused in the case are still absconding.

ARMS SEIZED: The Kohat police in a midnight raid arrested 40 criminals, including five proclaimed offenders. The operation was led by DPO Khalid Mahmood and was conducted in remote parts of the district.

The police seized 16 Kalashnikov rifles, two semi-automatic rifles, 19 rifles, nine shotguns, 70 pistols, 80 kilogrammes of hashish and 550 bottles of liquor from the possession of the accused.

The proclaimed offenders were identified as Azam Khan, Gul Faraz, Gul Mohammad, Qaiser Khan and Raj Gul.