Special Homicide Investigation Units Begin Work in Punjab

 

9 September 2015 - Lahore - The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, in partnership with the Punjab Police, organised a seminar on "Building the capacity of specialised homicide investigation units" in Lahore. This initiative began with the training of 108 master trainers from all 36 districts of Punjab by the UNODC in 2014, and today the Specialised Homicide Investigation Units (SHIU), comprising of 478 officers, will begin their duties. In addition, 1489 trained, honest and professional officials will assist these investigation officers. This development was announced by the Inspector General of the Punjab Police, Mushtaq Ahmad Sukhera, while addressing a seminar regarding the establishment of SHIU's in Punjab, held under the auspices of the UNODC in a local hotel on Wednesday. The Prosecutor General of Punjab, D.G of the Forensic Science Agency, RPO Multan, Justice (R) Dr. Khalid Ranjha, members of the UNODC and investigation officers from all over the Province of Punjab were also present in the seminar. The IGP informed the attendants that the work behind this initiative had begun last year, and that Tariq Masood Yasin had been assigned responsibility for this task. 

Furthermore, he said that 540 officers were picked for investigation training at the Police Training College in Chuhng, out of which 478 passed the course. During the training session, senior officers and experts from the Forensic Science Agency also trained them on modern methods in various fields, including evidence collection, preservation of crime scenes and completion of legal proceedings. He further said that the investigation officers would start working at police stations across the province, of which 78 are in Lahore, 52 in Sheikhupura, 75 in Gujranwala, 45 in Rawalpindi, 52 in Faisalabad, 33 in Sargodha, 40 in Multan, 36 in Sahiwal, 32 in Bahawalpur and 35 in Dera Ghazi Khan. 

The Representative of the UNODC, Mr. Cesar Guedes, while addressing the seminar congratulated the IGP, Mr. Sukhera, for this important initiative and said, "It is time and in fact long overdue to move forward towards specialisation in the fight against challenging crimes in Pakistan". He also stated, "The UNODC Office supported the Punjab Police in the development of these specialised mobile crime scene investigation units in Gujrat, Gujranwala and Sialkot as per the vision of the IGP, Mr. Sukhera, along with the provision of a specialised training programme". He added that the UNODC had also trained the police in performing as first responders at crime scenes to preserve evidence, and that the UNODC would provide 550 first responder kits for the protection of crime scenes.