Illegal weapon racket busted in Batala
BATALA: With the arrest of two men, Punjab Police on Saturday busted an illegal weapon racket at Batala in Gurdaspur district.
The accused have been identified as Sandeep Kumar and Sarwan Singh of Batala. Besides the kingpin, Joginder Singh, alias Jagga, who is already behind bars, four of their accomplices — Amrinder Singh, Lukas Masih, Robinpreet Singh and Sarabjit Singh — have also been identified.
“We received a tip off that Sandeep and Sarwan were roaming at Dhir village in Batala with illegal arms. Led by sub-inspector Daljit Singh, the CIA team raided the spot and arrested the duo,” said senior superintendent of police Rachhpal Singh. Eight weapons, including two countrymade 32 bore pistols and a 30 bore pistol, were also recovered, he said.
The SSP said Sandeep Kumar used to repair the gang’s illegal weapons at his father’s gun shop. Investigations also revealed that the racket was being run by Joginder Singh, who is a notorious heroin smuggler based in Batala and is presently lodged in the Amritsar jail. “Joginder Singh has 16 FIRs against him, of which 10 are related to drug smuggling. His properties worth ₹1.17 crore have already been forfeited,” said the SSP, adding that the gang had been procuring weapons along with heroin consignment from across the border and Uttar Pradesh.
A case has been registered against the seven men under the Arms Act at the Civil Lines police station. Efforts are on to nab the four remaining gang members, said the SSP.