Panic in Nalagarh as masked miscreant tries to shoot junk dealer; 2 arrested within 30 minutes
The victim had received ransom calls a few months ago from virtual cell numbers and had registered an FIR with the police
Panic gripped Nalagarh town on Wednesday morning after a masked, motorcycle-borne miscreant brandished a pistol and tried unsuccessfully to shoot a junk dealer outside his shop around 11.30 am.
According to the victim, two youths on a motorcycle stopped outside his shop while he was standing with his driver. The pillion rider, who had covered his face with a handkerchief, alighted from the vehicle, walked up to him and asked for him. The driver pointed towards the dealer.
The miscreant then handed him a chit and within moments brandished a pistol hidden inside his shirt and pointed it at his chest, attempting to shoot. The pistol failed to fire, giving the victim time to flee and hide behind the gate of his shop. The duo fled towards Nalagarh after the failed attempt, creating panic among onlookers.
On receiving information, SP Baddi Vinod Dhiman constituted special teams to arrest the miscreants. Police located and cornered the accused within half an hour of the incident and arrested them near the Dherowal barrier.
The accused have been identified as Jasprit Singh, 31, a resident of Kaithal district, and Manpreet Singh, 20, a resident of Sangrur district.
Dhiman, who inspected the spot, said the accused tried to take refuge in bordering Punjab after committing the crime. Police seized two pistols, 15 live cartridges and a motorcycle with no registration number, used in the attack, from the accused.
The victim had received ransom calls a few months ago from virtual cell numbers and had registered an FIR with the police. The IP addresses of these calls were traced abroad.
“Pawan Kaushal Chaudhary, a Rajasthan-based gangster, is believed to be behind this crime as per police investigation. Sophisticated weapons were used in the crime, though those arrested appear to be novices as they could not fire,” Dhiman said.
A case has been registered against the accused under Sections 109, 3(5) of the BNS and Sections 25, 54, 59 of the Arms Act at the Nalagarh police station. The arrested accused will be produced in court on Thursday. Further investigation is underway.
