TOBA TEK SINGH: A four-year-old child kidnapped from Pirmahal tehsil seven days ago, was recovered after an encounter in which one of the three suspected captors was killed and another was injured late on the night of 17th May.
Toba DPO Akhlaqullah Tarar informed newsmen while handing over the child to his parents at Pirmahal Chak 755 GB on Monday, that Ibad Waqas was playing in the street when two bikers came from Pirmahal bypass Road and lifted him away on their two-wheeler.
He said four police teams were formed to trace and recover the boy. One of the teams came across three suspects on a motorcycle near Nakasu Canal Bridge along side Ravi’s Head Sadhnai, who were carrying a child.
Seeing the police vehicle, they quickly turned towards a soling link road but after a short distance they fell off the bike and the child also fell onto the ground. The three suspects, taking cover in the bushes, started firing.
The DPO said the team immediately took the child into custody and retaliated. When the firing stopped, one of the suspects was found dead and another injured in firing by their third accomplice who escaped in the darkness of the night.
The killed outlaw was identified as Noor Hussain of Chak 7/8R, Mian Channu, while the wounded who was arrested and shifted to Arouti rural health centre was identified as Muhammad Akram of Jalalabad locality of Multan.
The DPO said during initial investigation, it was revealed that the suspects used to kidnap children to sell them to those having no child. The DPO announced prizes for the police team.
Published in Dawn, May 19th, 2026.