STF arrests 2 Bajrangi gang shooters

LUCKNOW: The UP Special Task Force (STF) claimed to have foiled murders of a property dealer and businessman after arrest of two dreaded shooters of jailed gangster Prem Prakash Singh alias Munna Bajrangi in Faizabad district on Friday night.

STF senior superintendent of police (SSP), Abhishek Singh said the arrested shooters were identified as Abhinav Pratap Singh of Faizabad and Dhanesh Yadav of Gorakhpur.

He said Singh was a relative of Munna Bajrangi’s close accomplice Ajay Sipahi and was planning the murder of a renowned property dealer Ram Chander of Faizabad.

The SSP said tearlier he two accused had also made extortion calls to Ram Chander at the behest of Munna Bajrangi and Ajay Sipahi.

He said the extortionists had asked Ram Chander to transfer the ownership of land at a prime location in Faizabad in the name of their man and threatened him with dire consequences in case he did not do so.

He said Ram Chander had even lodged an FIR at Amaniganj police station of Faizabad earlier this month .

The STF official said a team was tracking the location of extortionists and was tipped off about their presence in a guest house in Faizabad.

He said the duo was arrested from a room of Swaymar Guest House and Lawn late on Friday night. Two firearms, including a semi-automatic pistol, were recovered from their possession.

He said the arrested accused revealed during interrogation that they were planning to eliminate Ram Chander and had come to Faizabad to do his recce. He said the firearms recovered from the two accused had also been arranged for the same purpose.

The two accused had also planned to eliminate a businessman of Allahabad as he had refused to pay extortion money to Munna Bajrangi and Ajay Sipahi.

He said the STF team was trying to trace other shooters of Munna Bajrangi gang as they were trying to extort money from different people by threatening them.