At least 13 bandits were killed in a gunfight with villagers in a village near Sahiwal early on Sunday morning, police and witnesses said. More than 25 bandits robbed a house in Chak 135/9-L and were about to break into another one when villagers opened fire on them. At least 13 bandits were killed in the fight that lasted more than one hour. Twelve others, most of them injured, fled. Police said the bandits belonged to the Oar Gang, which was wanted by police in a number of cases. Police have seized the truck and car that they left behind. The dead bodies have been sent for autopsy and the weapons and ammunition they were carrying have been seized.
Sahiwal Deputy Superintendent Police (DSP) Malik Daud told reporters the gang was “involved in a number of inter-provincial incidents of crime”. He said police teams had been sent to search for the bandits who fled. Witnesses said the bandits had first robbed the bungalow of Sardar Najeeb, whose nephews climbed the surrounding rooftops and fired at the bandits. Other villagers then joined the gunfight, they said, and injured five of the bandits. Najeeb said the bandits had robbed goods worth Rs 10,000 from the same village 11 months ago. Ghala Mandi Police have registered a case.