LAHORE (Monetoring Desk) Khawaja Tareef Gulshan, commonly known as Teefi Butt, who was a key suspect in the murder of businessman Ameer Balaj, lost his life in what authorities have described as an alleged encounter with the Crime Control Department (CCD) in Punjab on Saturday.
According to official sources, the incident occurred in Kot Sabzal, a locality within the Rahim Yar Khan district, while Teefi Butt was being transported to Lahore following his extradition from Dubai a day earlier.
CCD officials stated that during the transfer, unidentified armed men allegedly opened fire on the police convoy in an attempt to rescue the accused. The firing reportedly triggered a brief gun battle, during which Teefi Butt was fatally injured. Authorities claim that initial forensic indications suggest the fatal shots may have come from his own associates’ weapons.
Police shifted the body to a nearby mortuary for post-mortem examination, while a search operation is underway to locate and arrest the fleeing suspects involved in the assault.
Teefi Butt was among the primary accused nominated in the First Information Report (FIR) concerning the killing of Ameer Balaj, who was shot dead in a targeted attack near Thokar Niaz Beg, Lahore, on February 19, 2024.
After the incident, Teefi Butt reportedly fled abroad and was subsequently declared a proclaimed offender. The Punjab Police, with approval from the Ministry of Interior, pursued extradition proceedings through Interpol. Red warrants were issued, resulting in his detention and return to Pakistan earlier this week.
He was flown to Karachi Airport late Thursday night via a private airline and later handed over to a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) in Lahore tasked with probing the murder case.
Earlier, the CCD Punjab had formally requested custody of the suspect for further interrogation, but the Lahore investigation wing was said to have declined to transfer the case.
Authorities have stated that further investigations are ongoing to determine the exact circumstances surrounding the encounter.
