Fact-check: True. Cops in Punjab suspended for stealing hundreds of motorbikes, rickshaws, cars
The City Police Officer (CPO) in Gujranwala has indeed suspended a station house officer (SHO) and an assistant sub-inspector (ASI) over charges of embezzlement and fraud
Updated Monday Sep 25 2023
Posts viewed more than 10,000 times on X, formerly known as Twitter, claim that a police official in Punjab has been charged with stealing over 200 motorcycles, five rickshaws, three cars, a truck and electrical cables.
The claim is in fact true.
Claim
On September 10, a verified account on X posted a photo alongside a claim that a police complaint had been registered against a station house officer (SHO) in Gujranwala, Punjab, for the theft of a large number of motorcycles, rickshaws and cars.
The post has been viewed over 9,000 times on X, and reposted and liked 165 and 233 times, respectively to date.
Similar claims were shared by other X users here, here and here.
Fact
It is true. The city police officer (CPO) in Gujranwala has indeed suspended a station house officer (SHO) and an assistant sub-inspector (ASI) over charges of embezzlement and fraud.
A police complaint has also been registered against both, officials confirm.
The public relations department of the Inspector General of Punjab Police has shared a written statement of the district police office in Gujranwala with Geo Fact Check.
According to the statement, the CPO Gujranwala suspended an SHO and an ASI, after it was “revealed that items belonging to the police station had been transferred and sold”.
It further states that after an inquiry, a police complaint has been registered against the two men and further legal action will be taken as well.
The spokesperson of the district police office in Gujranwala also shared the first information report (FIR) with Geo Fact Check.
According to the FIR registered on September 8, the station house officer and the assistant sub-inspector stole 234 motorcycles, one truck, three cars, five rickshaws and electrical wires, which they hid in a local warehouse.
The FIR further adds that when the police raided the warehouse only 18 motorcycles could be recovered, all other items had been sold off by then.
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