SUKKUR: Khairpur police claimed to have arrested a colleague of theirs among four suspects who were allegedly involved in stealing 25 pole-mounted transformers (PMTs) from Benazir Basti.

They added that five stolen transformers, their coils and others material had also been recovered from the suspects during a police raid at the Benazir Basti area within the jurisdiction of B-Section police station.

According to detail, in recent time PMTs started disappearing from time to time mainly from Banazir Basti and other parts of the city.

Khairpur SSP Dr Samiullah Soomro took notice ofthe thefts and directed B-Section police station SHO Mushtaf Ahmed Jatoi and the incharge of the Lugman checkpoint, Abdul Jabbar Phulpoto, to arrest the thieves.

The police said they had arrested Raza Qureshi, Muhammad BachalMari, Haji Soomro and a police official identified as Khadim Suhag and recovered five stolen transformers, coils and other material from their custody.

They added that they had lodged an FIR NO. 372/2024 u/s 412, 212 at B-Section police station on the complaint of ASIFayazHussain onbehalf of the state and started investigation of the incident.

The police said the alleged police official, Khadim Suhag, had been nominated as the main suspect.

They added that police had also nominated a private watchman of a park of Benazir Basti, Oshaq Arbani, and Danish, Haji Soomro, Abid Ali Kharos, Sajawal alias Mulan, Ali Jan, Raja, Ghulam Shabir Soomro and Raza Ali.

They said the arrested suspects during an initial investigation had confessed to stealing 21 PMTs fromBenzair Basti and sell them to a workshop of Raza Qureshi and Haji Soomro near King Marriage Hall in Khairpur.

The accused disclosed that they sold each stolen for Rs160,000 whereas each one originally cost Rs1.2million, police said, adding that the suspects had informed them that they often paid Rs25,000 Rs30,000 as share to the alleged police official, Khadim Hussain Suhag.

The suspected police official revealed during the investigation that whenever he found local police patrols and other officers out of the area at night, he informed the alleged members of the gang who started stealing the transformers.

The arrested police official said he was arrested along with other suspects the other night during a police raid at Benazir Basti. -Correspondent