LOWER DIR: The police on Tuesday claimed to have busted a gang of robbers and recovered valuables within 24 hours of a house robbery reported in the Maidan area here.

Officials at the Lal Qila police station said a group of armed men, two of whom dressed in tracksuits, forcibly entered the house of Saaz Mohammad in Pari Kas area on Monday night. The assailants held the family hostage at gunpoint, claiming to be law enforcement personnel conducting an arms recovery operation.

The house owner told police that the robbers spolce in Urdu and identified themselves as law enforcers. `They assured us that they were not interested in taking money and were merely conducting a search for illegal weapons.

However, after seizing a Kalashnikov rifle and a pistol with magazines from his room, the intruders locked the entire family in a single room and proceeded to ransack the house,` the complain-ant told the police.

He said the suspects looted 14 tolas of gold jewellery, six expensive mobile phones, and Rs257,000 in cash. `The total value of the stolen items was estimated at approximately Rs5.45 million. The gang fled the scene following the robbery.

Following the incident, the Lal Qila police registered an FIR against unidentined suspects based on the complaint of the house owner under sections 458, 457, 395, 347, 171, 170, 419 of Pakistan Penal Code, and launched an investigation under the supervision of additional SHO Mehran Khan.

The police later managed to trace and arrest five members of the six-member gang from various locations on Tuesday.

During initial interrogation, the suspects confessed to their involvement in the robbery. Police recovered several stolen items from their possession, including mobile phones, Rs200,000 in cash, and a pistol. Correspondent