Arms racket busted in Nashik, three held
MAJOR HAUL Accused were caught in a stolen vehicle from Mumbai
MUMBAI: An interstate arms racket was busted after Nashik rural police seized a large quantity of arms on the Agra-mumbai highway on Friday. They seized 25 rifles, including one machine gun, 19 revolvers, 44 guns and 4,136 live cartridges. Three people, including two Mumbai residents, have been arrested. Officials said they suspect the arms were to be delivered to an unknown person in Mumbai.
The police said they seized the weapons at a toll naka after the accused filled diesel at a fuel pump, but refused to pay, and instead threatened the staff at gun point before fleeing from the spot. The staff informed the police station, which in-turn called the control room and a nakabandi was announced. The accused were caught from a stolen vehicle registered in Mumbai.
Superintendent of police (Nashik) Sanjay Dharade told HT they suspect this to be part of a larger racket. He said the three accused had looted a company called M/s Punjab arms and ammunitions in Banda district in Uttar Pradesh and were on their way to Mumbai via Kanpur when they were arrested. “We suspect the three have other accomplices,” he said.
The is the first major seizure in years and the last time weapons were seized in such large quantities was in Aurangabad in 2006, when 43 kg RDX, 50 hand grenades and several AK-47 rifles and 3,200 live cartilages were found in separate seizures on May 9, 2006, by the Maharashtra ATS
The accused were arrested in a jeep with a fake licence plate number. Those arrested are Nagesh Bansode, 23, from Wadala in Nashik, Salman Ammanulla Khan,19, and Badrinujam Badshah alias Sumit, 27, both residents of Sewri in Mumbai.
The Chandwad police station at Nashik Rural are investigating the case and a first information report (FIR) under the arms act and under relevant section of the Indian penal code (IPC), has been filed. The three were produced in a local court in Nashik and were remanded in police custody till December 28.