When gangsters ran riot on Delhi road
NEW DELHI: Two passersby and two residents of outer Delhi were killed and at least nine men were injured in a shooting and a related road accident in north Delhi’s Sant Nagar on Monday morning, the police said.
The attack was carried out against four residents of outer Delhi’s Tajpur village by wanted criminal Jitender Mann alias Gogi, said MM Oberoi, special commissioner of police (special cell).
Carrying a reward of ₹2 lakh on his head, Gogi led the attack in which at least two dozen rounds were fired, a survivor told police.
Police identified the dead as Sant Nagar resident Sangeeta Sharma, 37, a 20-year-old motorcycle rider Rajkumar, the 17-year-old prime target Mukul and Gogi’s gang member Sanjeet.
Those directly injured in the attack and a related sport utility vehicle (SUV) accident included five passersby.
Mukul was identified as the nephew of Deepak alias Raju, who was allegedly an associate of Gogi’s rival and jailed gangster Sunil alias Tillu.
“Deepak was gunned down by Gogi in 2015 for having an affair with Gogi’s cousin,” said Oberoi about the background of the 2015 murder.
‘NOT A GANG WAR’
“Mukul has been murdered for actively pursuing the case,” said Oberoi. The officer refused to call it a “gang war” and denied that the crime had anything to do with Gogi’s rival Tillu.
Mukul was also found to be the cousin of a Delhi Police constable. The bulletproof Scorpio Mukul and his associates were riding was found registered in the name of the constable, said an investigator.
The investigation into the case has been transferred to the special cell unit, but Gogi and his associates remain elusive.
The crime took place at 9.50 am near Sant Nagar bus stop, barely 300-400 metres from Burari police station.
The targets were the four Tajpur men, who had been frequenting a gymnasium.
They had arrived in a Mahindra Scorpio which was parked facing against the traffic.
After exercising, the men were returning to their Scorpio when a Toyota Fortuner rammed their SUV.
Eyewitnesses said the five men in the Fortuner began firing at the men in Scorpio.
“Two men in the Scorpio drove against the traffic to escape. The Scorpio was chased by two attackers who fired multiple rounds,” said a woman shopkeeper said, adding, “But most bullets missed their mark and hit three passersby, killing one and injuring two.”
“The two other men who couldn’t make it to the Scorpio ran for their lives,” the woman further said.
“One of them escaped into the gym, but was chased and shot in his leg. The other man, Mukul, ran on the pavement, but couldn’t make it far,” said Karan Kohli, a local shopkeeper.
The Scorpio, meanwhile, sped into a narrow lane before taking a sudden left turn.
“While swerving, it rammed a cyclist and three motorcycles,” said Deepak Ahuja, a local shopkeeper.
One of those accident victims, Rajkumar, later succumbed to his injuries.
The Scorpio’s run immediately came to an end when it climbed a shop’s concrete steps.
The driver was later found to be shot in the back.
The attackers, on the other hand, fled unopposed in their Fortuner, which was soon found abandoned near a private hospital in Shalimar Bagh. Inside the Fortuner was the body of Gogi’s associate Sanjeet, prompting police to suspect that he was abandoned near the hospital in the hope he would receive medical treatment.
Eyewitnesses were unsure if they saw the four targeted men firing in retaliation.
FOUR RESIDENTS OF OUTER DELHI’S TAJPUR VILLAGE WERE TARGETED BY WANTED CRIMINAL JITENDER MANN ALIAS GOGI. TWO PASSERSBY WERE ALSO KILLED IN INCIDENT