CHAKWAL: A former police officer who formed and led a band of robbers involved in major bank robberies was arrested by the Chakwal police, who say they also recovered a Kalashnikov, two pistols and Rs300,000 from the arrested robber.

According to police sources Adil Saleem was arrested from his native village by a police team led by Station House Officer (SHO) Syed Azhar Hassan Shah.

Adil is a resident of Sar Kalan Village which is located near the Salt Range and falls under the jurisdiction of the Kallar Kahar Police Station. Sar Kalan and its neighbouring village of Matan are considered a safe haven for proclaimed offenders.

Adil Saleem was a police constable with the Karachi police for twelve years.

He was dismissed from service in 2003 and formed his gang of robbers in 2004. He was demanded by the police in Karachi, Jhelum, Sargodha and Lahore.

The gang which he leads is notorious for conducting major bank robberies, including the largest bank robbery in the history of Lahore, in which the robbers made away with Rs90.66 million last November.

“Adil had not participated in the robbery at Burj Bank in Lahore for some reason and his younger brother Anjum Saleem had led the gang through the robbery,” SHO Shah told Dawn.

After the robbery at Burj Bank, the Lahore Police raided Sar Kalan village with help from the local police but could not arrest the robbers, who took refuge in the nearby mountains which are covered with thick forests.

However, the SHO said, Adil had led the gang in other robberies.

“The band of robbers looted National Savings Bank in Karachi and made away with Rs850,000. The same gang robbed Habib Bank in Jhelum of Rs1.4 million last year,” the SHO said.

The gang also looted Alfalah Bank of Rs1 million and United Bank of Rs2 million.

Adil forced the Sargodha police to retreat when they came for his arrest. After robberies in Sargodha, the Sargodha Police had marched on to Sar Kalan to arrest the robbers. However, Adil had made an announcement from the village mosque, telling villagers that robbers dressed as policemen were coming to loot the village. The locals had come out with guns and had fired at the police team, which had to retreat, a police official said.

Interestingly, the notorious band of robbers did not loot banks in Chakwal.

Published in Dawn, April 19th, 2016