KARACHI: Four Pakistan police officers have been charged with corruption hours after one of the country’s top cricketers complained of having been shaken down for bribes during a recent road trip, officials said Tuesday.
Sohaib Maqsood, who played 29 one-day internationals and 26 Twenty20 matches for Pakistan until 2021, wrote on X that he had been stopped while driving from Karachi to Multan.
“Sindh police is so corrupt that they stop you after 50 km and ask for money or they threat you to go to the police station...,” he posted.
He said he paid 8,000 rupees (around $28) on his way to take part in a T20 match.
Later Tuesday, a statement from Sindh police said four police officers had been found to have been involved in the incident.
“Legal action has been initiated,” the statement said, adding that two police officials had been suspended for “negligence.”
Police officers in Pakistan have long been accused of corruption, and those in rural areas of the Sindh province have a particularly bad reputation.
International cricketers are usually treated as celebrities in Pakistan, but often conceal their identities in public.
Howzat! Pakistan cops arrested after shaking down star cricketer
https://arab.news/43pz3
Howzat! Pakistan cops arrested after shaking down star cricketer
- Sohaib Maqsood said he paid Rs8,000, or around $28, on his way to participate in a T20 match
- Cricketers are usually treated as celebrities in Pakistan, but usually conceal their identities in public
Deadly explosions in northwest Pakistan kill three, wound over 20
- Unexploded mortar shell in Bajaur home kills one, injures nine including children
- Motorcycle bomb near Bannu police station kills two, wounds 12 civilians
PESHAWAR: At least three people were killed and more than 20 others injured in two separate explosions in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, officials said on Monday.
Pakistan has witnessed a steady rise in attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021, with most violence targeting police and security forces in former tribal districts along the border.
Islamabad says the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has reorganized across the frontier and operates from safe havens inside Afghanistan, a charge Kabul rejects, insisting it does not allow its territory to be used against other countries.
In the first incident, a senior police officer Anwar Zeb told Arab News a suspected mortar shell exploded in Salarzai, a remote town in Bajaur district, killing one person and injuring nine others.
“Initial reports indicated that children had found an unexploded mortar shell and brought it home, where it later detonated late Sunday evening,” he added.
Riaz Khan, media officer at Bajaur Rescue1122, said those injured in the blast included men, women and children.
“A rescue team was swiftly dispatched to the area to evacuate those dead and injured to the nearest medical facility,” he added.
In a separate incident, a remote-controlled bomb planted in a motorcycle exploded near Miryan Police Station in southern Bannu district, according to Aamir Khan, spokesman to Regional Police Officer.
“The explosive device had been installed in a motorcycle parked near shops in front of the police facility, killing two civilians while 12 others sustained injuries,” he added.
Security forces cordoned off the area immediately after the explosion and launched a search operation.
Investigations into both incidents are ongoing.
