Karachiite criticises police inaction after being forced to 'pay ransom for stolen car'

By
Kashif Mushtaq
Unidentified lifters taking away citizens car from outside house in these still taken from CCTV footage. — Reporter
Unidentified lifters taking away citizen's car from outside house in these still taken from CCTV footage. — Reporter

KARACHI: No respite for Karachiites in terms of lawlessness in the economic hub of Pakistan as another citizen had not only been deprived of his vehicle by unidentified lifters but was also forced to “pay ransom” due to “police inaction” in pursuing the case.

The local police took no action despite being immediately informed, the citizen told Geo News, adding: “Police responded to me with an excuse to lodge his case after the completion of the general elections — held on February 8.”

Affected Karachi citizen shows photos of the vehicle sent by the car lifters demanding ransom via WhatsApp. — Reporter
Affected Karachi citizen shows photos of the vehicle sent by the car lifters demanding ransom via WhatsApp. — Reporter

Unidentified thieves had stolen the affected citizen’s vehicle from outside his residence in the New Karachi Sector 11 area on February 3.

When approached multiple times, the police officials concerned were still reluctant to lodge a first information report (FIR). Surprisingly, the complaint has been lodged by the police despite the availability of clear CCTV footage of the car theft incident.

“I received a telephone call from an unknown number two days ago, in which the caller demanded Rs500,000 ransom for the stolen asset, and informed me that the vehicle was present in Balochistan’s Chaman besides sending photos of my car.” the citizen claimed.

Screenshot of chat between the affected citizen and the car lifter. — Reporter
Screenshot of chat between the affected citizen and the car lifter. — Reporter

He added that he made an online payment of Rs50,000 to the said account as token amount.

The Karachiite slammed the negligence of the police department to recover the stolen car despite having all the evidence and required information.

On the other hand, the police officers told Geo News that they registered the initial complaint against the car theft. The case will be referred to the Anti-Vehicle Lifting Cell (AVLC) for further investigation, they added.