KARACHI: Two employees of a telecommunication company were lynched by a mob on Friday in Karachi’s Machhar Colony area over rumours of child kidnapping.
The incident occurred in the limits of the Docks police station. In the footage circulating on social media, the mob can also be seen setting a vehicle on fire, possibly belonging to the deceased.
The clips further show that scores of people had gathered and the two deceased were pelted with heavy rocks before being beaten with blunt objects.
Read Stories about kidnappers gang termed scaremongering
A resident told media that rumours of two child kidnappers were doing the rounds in the area before the incident. “There is unverified news still circulating in the area and no one is sure why they were killed,” he added.
SSP Kemari Fida Janwari reached the scene to probe the matter and said the police are looking at the incident from different angles.
He confirmed that the two deceased were workers of a telecom company, who had come to check signals in the area.
“After registering the case, the investigation will be done on merit and all accused involved in the incident will be arrested,” said the senior police official.
Later, the Kemari district police said in a statement that some people spread “false rumours” that two persons were trying to abduct children in a car near a private school.
The statement identified the victims as Muhammad Ayman Javed, son of Saeed Javed, and Muhammad Ishaq, son of Muhammad Haroon.
The bodies of the deceased shifted to the Civil Hospital, the police added.
The police also confirmed that the victim’s vehicle, bearing registration number ALB- 946, was also set on fire.
The police said they were obtaining CCTV footages to ascertain the identity of the accused.
Meanwhile, the area police have claimed to have arrested two suspects involved in the lynching.
They said eight accused have been identified so far with the help of CCTV footage.