Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): In a major breakthrough, the crime branch police on Thursday busted a state-level illegal firearms trafficking racket and arrested eight suspects with three semi-automatic pistols, one country-made single-shot pistol (katta) and live ammunition worth Rs 4 lakh.
The gang’s kingpin, hailing from Khargone, used to procure firearms from the Sikligar community and sell them to criminals in Bhopal and other parts of the state. Police officials said a case has been registered and further investigations are underway to unravel the full network of the syndicate.
Additional DCP (crime) Shailendra Singh Chauhan said the action was carried out under the Arms Act as part of an ongoing campaign against illegal weapons in the city. The prime suspect, Ali Khan (25), a resident of Khargone, was identified as the gang leader who sourced illegal weapons from Sikligar groups in Barwani district and supplied them in Bhopal.
The action began after a tip-off about a youth waiting near a graveyard in Jahangirabad area with a firearm. Acting swiftly, police apprehended Danish alias Danni Khan (20) of Retghat area and recovered a pistol with a loaded magazine. His interrogation led to more raids in TT Nagar, Khatlapura Road, Karishma Park and Lalghati.
Subsequently, Mohammad Aman (24) of Tila Jamalpura, Mohammad Mustafa (20) of Retghat, Talib Khan (19) of Ashoka Garden, Arshan Khan (21), Sarfaraz Pathan (26) of Khanugaon and Gufran (23) of Sultanpur were arrested. Additional weapons and cartridges were recovered from their possession.
Police revealed that several suspects have prior criminal records, including cases related to assault, illegal arms and other serious offences. Aman, Mustafa and Gufran have multiple cases registered against them.
During interrogation, the suspects confessed to selling illegal weapons to other criminals in Bhopal. Police have registered a case under Section 25(1-A) of Arms Act against all suspects. Proceedings under Section 107 of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) may be initiated to attach the properties of the suspects.
