Three gun-runners landed into the custody of the crime branch unit (Zone III) attached to the Mira Bhayandar-Vasai Virar (MBVV) police on Tuesday night. Acting on a tip-off about the suspected arrival of arms dealers, a team led by API- Suhas Kamble under the supervision of police inspector- Shahuraj Ranawre laid a trap and spotted a suspiciously moving Wagon-R car near the Sai City area in Nalasopara (east) at around 8 pm. The team stopped the car which had three occupants on-board including the driver.
The police found a pistol, magazine and five live cartridges in the car. While the car and firearm were seized, the trio who have been identified as- Abdul Karim Shaikh (26), Saddam Abbas Ali Shaikh (23) and Rajkumar Matadin Gautam (24) were taken into custody and booked under the relevant sections of the Arms Act and Maharashtra Police Act.
While Abdul and Saddam are residents of Kurla and Navi Mumbai respectively, Rajkumar hails from village-Rampur located in Jaunpur district of Uttar Pradesh.
The police suspect that Rajkumar had smuggled the firearm into the city from Uttar Pradesh and was planning to sell it off with the help of the other two accused. Investigations were on to ascertain the source of the firearm and its potential buyer.
