Baba Ladla came to Lyari for reorganising his gang: sources

KARACHI: Baba Ladla, the infamous Lyari gangster killed in a shootout with Rangers, had reached the neighbourhood from Iran via Turbat, Balochistan, subsequent investigations into his death reveal.

Ladla, known for playing football with the heads of his opponents, was killed early Thursday morning along with his two accomplices in a shootout.

Paramilitary personnel, in an intelligence-based operation, arrived at the Lyari's Phoolpatti lane. They were fired upon by suspects hidden inside house in the locality.

In retaliation, three suspects were killed on the spot, while three others managed to flee. One of the three deceased was identified as Noor Muhammad alias Baba Ladla.

Ladla was staying near Iranian city of Chabahar, sources privy to subsequent investigations told Geo News. He had many relatives in a village close to the Iranian city.

The infamous gangster arrived in Turbat, Balochistan from Iran, therefrom he took various land routes to sneak into Lyari, they said.

The purpose of Ladla's arrival in Lyari this time was to reorganise his gang and facilitate some politicians' entry in the area.

Lyari, one of the oldest neighbourhoods of Karachi, has long been plagued by gang violence, drug business, extortion racketeering and gambling.

Gangs would often engage in armed clashes over the turf. The neighbourhood had become a heaven for criminals as it lies close to the megapolis' largest trade centers.

These outlaws once gathered millions in protection money from traders, apart from kidnappings for ransom, drug selling, target killings and other heinous crimes.

But the situation in Karachi and Lyari as well has changed over the recent years after the law enforcement, backed by civilian government, launched a crackdown on terrorists and criminals in the megapolis in September 2013.

The city has since witnessed sharp fall in crime, however, street crimes prevail with on and off rise in number of robberies and muggings.