Two alleged members of an inter-provincial vehicle theft gang, including its ringleader, were killed in the late hours of Wednesday in an encounter with the Anti-Vehicle Lifting Cell (AVLC) of the police in the Sohrab Goth area of Karachi.
Police identified one of the deceased suspects as Farman Elahi, alias Imran Mani, who was allegedly the leader of the Mani Gang. Officials said both the suspects were part of the inter-provincial network involved in stealing vehicles from Karachi and selling them in Punjab, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
According to AVLC officials, Farman was a habitual offender who had been arrested three times in the past and was wanted in more than 20 vehicle theft and snatching cases. Police said he had allegedly been involved in stealing and snatching vehicles in Karachi’s East, West and Central districts since 2021.
The investigators further claimed that the deceased suspect had links with the Lahore-based gang led by Kashif, alias Kashu. Police said around 22 criminal cases, including those pertaining to vehicle theft, illegal weapons and narcotics, had been registered against him in Punjab since 2015.
Police found two 30-bore pistols with loaded magazines on the suspects. A vehicle reportedly stolen from the Ferozabad area of Karachi was also found in their possession. Meanwhile, Sindh Home Minister Ziaul Hassan Lanjar congratulated the Criminal Investigation Agency DIG, AVLC SSP and the entire police team on the operation. In a statement issued by his office, he described the action against the inter-provincial vehicle theft network as a major success for the Sindh police.
The home minister said the gang responsible for transporting stolen vehicles from Karachi to other provinces had been dismantled. He directed police to further intensify operations against inter-provincial criminal groups and ensure that their facilitators and all those involved in the smuggling and sale of stolen vehicles were brought to justice.
