A transport businessman who was engaged in construction on a plot on the outskirts of Karachi has been threatened by extortionists who have demanded one million rupees, it emerged on Friday.
Complainant Sarfaraz Ali told Shah Latif Police that when construction began on his plot, four men appeared on two motorcycles brandishing pistols. They told him that he would have to pay them one million rupees if he wanted to continue building. They handed his guards a blackmail note with a bullet before taking off.
Ali added that he felt he would be able to identify the men.
He also told the police that on October 16, while he was sleeping at home, his watchman Abdul Samad informed him that about 20 men had arrived at the Malir plot, demolished its boundary walls and fired shots in the air.
Read: Out of 118 extortion complaints, 44 were found to be genuine: the police
The guard identified the men as Dher Muhammad, Yaseen, Ghalib Domki and Akbar, believed to be the same men who had come to deliver the bullet.
Ali has filed an FIR (No. 1541/25) for extortion, threats and mischief under Sections 427, 384, 385, 337H(ii) and 34 of the Pakistan Penal Code. Shah Latif SHO Zameer Ahmed said they had handed over the case to the Special Investigation Unit.
Last week, the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry informed its members and the city’s business community that there was an increase in extortion threats. Several traders had received blackmail notes accompanied by bullets.
Most recently, three members of a gang were arrested for trying to extort money from JDC Foundation leader Zafar Abbas.
