Two masked men disguised as delivery couriers damaged a BMW and a Mercedes-Benz used by former prime minister Nawaz Sharif outside his Avenfield apartments in central London, and removed parts from the cars. Officials from Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) have described the episode as a suspected politically motivated attack.
Closed-circuit television footage posted on X by Khurram Butt, a PML-N Youth Wing leader, shows two people arriving on motorcycles at around midnight. Both wore masks and gloves to hide their identities before approaching the parked vehicles outside the former premier’s residence. Nawaz is in London for a week-long stay for medical check-ups, together with his sons Hasan and Hussain Nawaz.
Suspects removed four parts from Sharif’s cars
According to Butt, the suspects took four items from the vehicles and damaged at least one rear-view mirror. The BMW and Mercedes-Benz are estimated to be worth about £200,000 combined, although the scale of the financial loss has not been independently established.
The footage also shows seven to ten other vehicles parked along the same road at that time. Only the two cars linked to Nawaz, however, were visibly targeted. They would normally be kept inside the Avenfield property, but renovation work has restricted access to the usual parking, so they were left on the public road.
Butt said the footage had been handed over to the Metropolitan Police, and that officers were investigating the incident.
PML-N alleges political motive behind selective targeting
PML-N UK President Ahsan Dar alleged that the incident appeared politically motivated rather than an ordinary vehicle theft. He argued that singling out the two cars linked to Nawaz, while several others stood nearby, raised serious questions about the suspects’ intentions.
The identities of the suspects and their motives have not been established. Police have made no independently confirmed finding that the incident was politically driven.
Butt said the case was especially worrying because it was not the first time vehicles used by the former prime minister had been targeted in London. In May 2023, a vehicle linked to Nawaz was damaged during a clash between Black Lives Matter protesters and police in central London, when a demonstrator threw coffee at it and kicked it.
Series of security incidents involving the Sharif family
The family has faced several security-related incidents in London over the years. In July 2018, protesters tried to force their way into the Avenfield residence, and police were called after demonstrators attempted to breach the entrance. Confrontations between rival political supporters led to arrests.
In May 2021, four unidentified men, three of them masked, reportedly tried to enter the London office of Nawaz Sharif’s son Hassan Nawaz while the former prime minister was inside. The incident was reported to police, and PML-N leaders alleged the men had intended to attack Nawaz Sharif. In April 2022, a confrontation outside the London office left a security guard injured, and police confirmed receipt of an assault complaint.
In a separate matter in March and April 2023, three vehicles were allegedly registered in Nawaz’s name and at his Avenfield residence without his knowledge or consent. The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) sent registration documents to his London address, which is how the matter came to light. Sharif’s office reported the incidents to police and the DVLA, prompting a fraud investigation, and the DVLA later confirmed his details had been removed from the vehicle records.
