NAWABSHAH: Two suspected criminals were shot dead in an encounter near Jam Saheb town of Shaheed Benazirabad district, police said on Tuesday.

The entire district police were put on alert after receiving a tip-off about a gang of criminals riding a stolen car, which was spotted near the town, SSP retired Captain Haider Raza told media personnel at the Peoples Medical University Hospital (PMUH), where a postmortem of the bodies was being performed.

He said that the white Toyota Corolla was stolen from a place within the jurisdiction of the Daur police station. The police team that intercepted the vehicle found four armed men riding it, he added.

He said that as soon as the car was signaled to stop, its occupants opened fire on the police team. In the ensuing encounter, two suspects were killed but their two companions managed to escape, said the SSP.

The killed suspects were later identified as Hasan and Imran, who belonged to the Shar community. The team took the bodies to the PMUH for a postmortem examination.

Hasan Shah was nominated in 18 criminal cases registered at various police stations, the police officer said. About Imran Shar, he said the suspect was a resident of Khairpur district and his criminal record was being collected.

The police team impounded the car and seized two pistols from the deceased suspects, he said, adding that a hunt for the escaped suspects was underway.

Published in Dawn, December 6th, 2023