Quetta Customs official attacked and beaten by smugglers, succumbs to injuries

Deputy Collector Customs Quetta Dr Abdul Quddus Sheikh, who was severely beaten up by suspected smugglers earlier this week, passed away on Tuesday morning at a hospital in Karachi.

He was attacked at Gahi Khan Chowk when he was returning home after seizing smuggled goods during an operation in the Kolpur area of Quetta.

According to customs officials, unidentified men had stopped his car at gunpoint, beat him up severely and fled. They had said that action against the attackers had been initiated after registration of an FIR as they had challenged the writ of the state.

Police have arrested three individuals in connection with the incident, according to sources.

Following the attack, the deputy commissioner of Islamabad took to Twitter to share that Dr Sheikh was in critical condition after being severely beaten by a gang of smugglers on Saryab Road. He added that the customs official was in a coma with ruptured lungs and a broken jaw.

Dr Sheikh was initially shifted to the trauma centre in Quetta. He was flown to Karachi on a chartered plane last night, where he passed away.

According to sources, the preventative working strength of the entire customs in Balochistan is below 500, with just 25 operational vehicles. Lack of resources and manpower had been a major issue facing the anti-smuggling department, though it had increased efforts against the smuggling of goods into or out of Balochistan.

Article originally published by Dawn news