Even Beloved Figure Is Prey to Robbers in Pakistani City

By SABA IMTIAZ

Street crime in Karachi, Pakistan’s biggest metropolis, has long been so bad that a kind of resigned pessimism has set in among residents. Ghazi Salahuddin, a columnist and human rights activist here, has made a parlor game out of it: He asks party guests how many of them have been mugged, and usually at least a third raise their hands, he says.

But even in Karachi, there are sacrosanct lines, and armed robbers crossed a huge one early Sunday morning when they held up Abdul Sattar Edhi, an 86-year-old philanthropist whose name has become synonymous with humanitarian causes in Pakistan.

Mr. Edhi was asleep in the building that serves as his residence and headquarters in the chaotic Mithadar neighborhood of Karachi when robbers entered the office, where they held him and others at gunpoint.

Half an hour later, the gunmen had cleaned out the premises of over $1 million and more than 10 pounds of gold jewelry that had been donated to the Edhi Foundation, which runs the largest private ambulance service in the country, as well as orphanages and retirement homes.

The Karachi police said that they were investigating the robbery and that a suspect had been identified, but gave no further details.

For decades, Mr. Edhi and his foundation have taken on the burden of a wide range of charitable causes, from picking up and burying the bodies of those killed in gang warfare to leading relief work in disaster zones across the country.

And though his foundation channels millions of dollars for needy Pakistanis, Mr. Edhi himself is famous for his humble way of living. He thinks sugar is an unnecessary expense, and he is usually seen wearing an often-mended tunic.

After the robbery was reported, social media websites bubbled over with outrage from Pakistanis, and government and police officials made a beeline to Mr. Edhi’s office.

“I had never imagined that this could happen to me,” Mr. Edhi said in an interview.

Increasingly, though, it has become clear that almost no one is off limits to Karachi’s criminals.

In September, a young woman was shot dead in the upscale neighborhood of Defence after she tried to resist a mugger. In recent years, victims of muggings and robberies have included a former Olympian hockey player and lawmakers with the Muttahida Qaumi Movement political party, which has long run the city.

The Karachi police have recently claimed success in controlling crime, mostly focusing on rampant political and gang violence. But a spokesman, Atiq Shaikh, said, “Street crime is where the numbers go against us.”

Cellphone theft, for instance, has become epidemic. More than 13,000 muggings focused on phone theft have been reported in Karachi since January, an increase of over 6,000 from the same period last year. There has also been an increase in the theft of motorcycles.

Mr. Shaikh blamed wealthy traders running the associations that govern electronic goods markets for reselling phones that had clearly been stolen. “They’re not ashamed of selling them, and we’re not ashamed of buying them,” he said. “Civil society and the media need to work together on this.”

Street crime in Karachi is prevalent enough that at least one newspaper, Dawn, runs a regular guide on personal security. It has also inspired satirists: A stand-up comic, Danish Ali, produced a sketch last year spoofing a popular crime show host hunting for a mugger.

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Mr. Edhi’s son Faisal, who helps run the foundation, said his father was incredibly hurt by the robbery.

“He had always believed that no one could touch the center, that it was a safe refuge. He has really taken it to heart,” he said. “He had always thought no one would enter the office, but clearly criminals have fallen to such a low.”