KARACHI: Pakistani philanthropist, social activist and humanitarian- Abdul Sattar Edhi may have dedicated his life to aiding the poor, and single handedly changed the face of welfare in Pakistan over the last sixty years, but that didnt stop a bunch of robbers from attacking the head office of Pakistans leading charity organisation- the Edhi Founda¬tion in Karachi, pointing a gun at Mr. Edhi and making off with millions in cash and gold, on Sunday, 19 October morning.
The renowned and widely respected Mr. Edhi founded his charity with an initial sum of a mere five thousand rupees years ago and his work has gradually expanded to help thousands in need over the years through the help of benefactors who have helped him through donations. Most of the cash and valuables stolen from his office on Sunday, had reportedly been deposited there by people for safe-keeping because they trusted Mr Edhi.
Dawn reports that according to Edhi Founda¬tion officials and police, eight robbers on motorcycles stormed the office in Mithadar area- in Karachis congested commercial hub, at about 9.45am, held its staff hostage at gunpoint and woke up Mr Edhi- in his 80s to get keys of lockers in which gold ornaments, other valuables and cash were kept. The men were reportedly dressed in shalwar-kameez and pointed handguns at Mr Edhi while demanding the keys to the lockers.
The Express Tribune reports that Edhis son claimed the bandits fled with Rs 50 million along with $400,000 and five kgs gold, much of which he said belonged to members of the public, who are allowed to store cash and valuables with the charity.
According to SSP Sheeraz Nazeer, the Edhi family lives in the office. Four of the robbers entered the office and locked staff members in a room. The SSP quoted the staff as saying that the robbers knew where the cash and gold had been kept. He said the possibility of involvement of an insider could not be ruled out. A special team is investigating the matter from different angles.
He said the authorities had provided four police guards to the office but Mr Edhi returned them some three months ago saying that he did not need any special protocol. According to the SSP, Mr Edhi told police that since the office was located in a small room, the presence of guards could affect the working environment.
Anwar Kazmi- spokesman for the Edhi Foundation said about five persons aged over 30, one of them wearing a mask, had entered the office. They asked three women staff to hand over locker keys. They then entered a nearby room where Mr Edhi was sleeping. They woke him up and pointing a pistol at him demanded the keys.
According to the spokesman, Mr Edhi told them that the keys were in the custody of his wife, Bilquees Edhi, who had gone out for some work. The robbers then made two or three calls from their mobile phones to get instructions and later broke open two of the shelves. They tried to smash the third locker but did not succeed. The robbers remained in the office for about half an hour, Mr Kazmi said, adding that he suspected that they might have been helped by an insider because they knew the exact location of the gold and cash, including foreign currency.
There were no security guards at the welfare centre at the time of the incident and neither were any CCTV cameras installed. Police have collected fingerprints from the crime scene and have launched an investigation into the matter.
The Express Tribune reports that the Kharadar SHO was suspended while an investigation team headed by Additional IG Karachi Ghulam Qadir Thebo was also constituted to probe the case, which has shocked many across Pakistan.
Government officials including the prime minister, provincial governor and chief minister have issued a sharp condemnation of the incident and called for an inquiry.
Edhi is credited for running the largest ambulance service in the country – his foundation has a network of offices around the world that raise funds to run what is Pakistans largest health charity.
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