Armed man surrenders after police officer engages him in dialogue
Zubair Qureshi
An intensely high drama of firing and kidnapping ended peacefully in the Dhok Jilani locality of Islamabad Sunday night when police tried to arrest a suspect but he fled to a nearby street firing at them.
A man was also injured in the firing incident.The accused named Qamar took shelter in a house and held two little children hostage.
However, the police team led by the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Dr Syed Mustafa Tanweer, SP Captain (R) Hamza and ASP Asad reached the spot and surrounded the house.
The armed man who had become a kidnapper by then warned the police team of severe consequences in case they tried to break in or arrest him as he had held two young children, 1 and 3-year old as hostage.
However, SSP Dr Mustafa engaged the man in dialogue and offered him safe passage. The man however, refused to talk to them and made it clear he would talk only to a well-known TV anchor.
In order to ensure the safe handing over of the kids and to avoid any scene of shootout or violence heads of the district police and the administration decided to send a lookalike policeman dressed like that anchor.
Qamar who had switched off the light of the room he was hiding in at once recognized the man was not that anchor and threatened to do something they ‘would never have imagined.’
At this moment SP Captain Hamza took a brave decision and jumped into the house to buy time and engage the man in dialogue.
The decision turned out to be a timely step and enabled the police official to psychologically overpower the man who agreed to talk to him and later surrendered himself to the police without hurting the children.
DC Hamza Shafqaat and SSP Dr Mustafa later acknowledged the ‘exemplary’ brave role of the young police officer and appreciated his heroic act.
The man injured in the incident is said to be out of danger while the local residents particularly family to the little children were all praise for the professionalism of the police and the district officials in successfully getting the children out of danger safely.
