Armed gangs outsmart police with new tactics in Peshawar

PESHAWAR: Armed snatchers in Peshawar’s upscale areas have developed a new method to conceal weapons, evading police checks with ease. The criminals are now hiding pistols in leather slits strapped below their knees, a technique reportedly influenced by online content and AI-driven tips on how to avoid detection. This new tactic has been observed in areas like Hayatabad, Dalazak Road, and Ring Road, where members of the police’s Ababeel Force have failed to detect firearms during routine frisking.

According to police sources and confessions from young suspects on social media chat groups, these new gangs often target cafes, tea points, and juice bars in affluent zones, scouting victims—typically youth with expensive smartphones—before executing the heist via motorcycles. The offenders no longer strap pistols to their waists but instead tuck compact firearms into narrow leather pouches worn near the ankle, allowing them to slip past conventional body searches.

A senior officer in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s counter-terrorism and investigation unit explained how technological advancements, including AI, have changed the landscape of street crimes. He highlighted the challenge of drug smuggling using live location-sharing and now, the rise of AI-driven street crimes, where even non-organized youth gangs mimic tactics previously used by terrorist groups.

This shift in criminal behavior is not just seen in petty crime; terrorists are also adapting. An officer mentioned a recent case in Chamkani, where a suicide bomber used a half-jacket instead of a full-body explosive vest, allowing him to bypass security checks. The officer emphasized the need for modernized policing to keep up with these evolving tactics.

With the increasing sophistication of these criminals, police procedures, especially body searches and checkpoints, are proving outdated, and there is a growing urgency to adapt policing methods to combat this new wave of criminal innovation.