Cops leave for UP to arrest dealer who sent arms to gangsters

PATIALA:A day after a police team headed by Crime Investigating Agency (II) incharge Bikramjit Brar busted an inter-state gang of criminals and arrested its seven members, the police are now looking for the “main dealer from Uttar Pradesh supplying arms to the gang”.

Members of an inter-state gang of robbers in police custody. photo: Rajesh Sachar

Tribune News Service

Patiala, October 15

A day after a police team headed by Crime Investigating Agency (II) incharge Bikramjit Brar busted an inter-state gang of criminals and arrested its seven members, the police are now looking for the “main dealer from Uttar Pradesh supplying arms to the gang”. Two police teams, along with gang members, have been despatched to the central state to arrest the dealer.

Police sources said the UP-based dealer’s arrest was crucial as it was suspected that these dealers were also actively providing arms to gangsters in Punjab. “The fact is that whenever these gang members needed weapons, they would simply contact these dealers in UP and easily get arms,” they added.

Meanwhile, the police have procured a seven-day remand of the arrested gang members and are grilling them further to ascertain their involvement in other crimes. “The modus operandi of the gang was unique. They would commit robberies on the highway. They would bang their car in another vehicle and once its occupant came out, they would rob the car at gunpoint. They would use some spray and attack other car occupant(s) whom they would find standing outside,” said Brar.

He further said the kingpin of the gang, Manvir Singh, was in touch with other gangsters and his interrogation was currently on. “He had so many cases registered against him and yet successfully dodged everyone and had been evading arrest, the CIA incharge said.

Yesterday, the police had recovered five pistols, cartridges and a robbed Maruti Swift car with Rs 3 lakh from the accused, namely Manvir Singh, Sanjeev Kumar and Amanjit Singh, all residents of Hoshiarpur, Mandeep Singh Manna from Noormahal, Yadvinder Singh Yadu from Payal, Jograj Singh from Jalandhar and Mukul Dev of Jalandhar.

Brar said Manvir had 17 cases registered against him and was a proclaimed offender in 12 of these while Amansjit Singh was wanted in a dozen of 16 cases registered against him. Sanjeev had 11 cases while Jograj had seven cases registered against them. Mukul Dev is a student of a private university in Jalandhar.