Private company, not honorary Somali consulate robbed: DIG South

KARACHI: A robbery, earlier reported to be carried out at the honorary consulate of Somalia, took place at a pharmaceutical company's office located in the same building, DIG South Azad Khan told Geo News.

However, the consulate's Chief Protocol Officer Imdad Hussain Shah said that offices in the entire building including the consulate were robbed.

A report of the incident was submitted to the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Sindh.

The son of the private pharmaceutical company's owner is the honorary counsel general for Somalia, Khan told Geo News.

Seven armed men entered the building that houses Somalia's honorary consulate in Block 5 Clifton in Karachi early Saturday.

The men took two security guards and two staff members, hostage, after they entered the premises at 3 AM on Saturday, honorary counsellor Saif-ur-Rehman told Geo News. "The robbers remained in the consulate for three hours and robbed off four laptops, four mobile phones, and one LCD. The dacoits took the CCTV records with them," Rehman stated.

Earlier on March 16, Pakistan and Somalia celebrated fifty-seven years of diplomatic relations at a reception where Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Somalia to Pakistan Mrs Khadia Mohamed Almalchzoumi officially launched the African country's honorary consulate in Karachi.

NOTE: An earlier version of this story reported the robbery to have taken place at the honorary consulate of Somalia.