‘SPO who stole 8 weapons was in touch with militants’
A day after a special police officer (SPO) attached with legislator from Wachi, Ajaz Mir, decamped with seven rifles and one pistol from the official residence of the legislator at high security zone Jawhar Nagar, the J&K director general of police (DGP) said that the SPO was in touch with the militants.
“We have found that the SPO had joined the other side (militants). We have got many leads about the persons who helped him and are working on those leads, DGP Dilbagh Singh told reporters in north Kashmir on the sidelines of a function. He said that police will take action against all those found involved in dereliction of their duties.
The police have questioned all seven policemen whose AK-47 rifles were stolen by the SPO, identified as Adil Bashir of Zainpora, Shopian.
On Saturday, legislator Mir also met senior police officers and gave details about the incident and the SPO.
Mir was not present at his official residence when the incident took place and was at Jammu.
The police had sealed the rooms of the house from where the weapons went missing and also confiscated mobile phones and a laptop from the official residence of the legislator.
The SPO, who is now missing and believed to have joined a militant group, is the neighbour of the assembly member and lives to close to his native house at Zanipora village in Shopian. Sources said that the SPO who usually used to cook for the legislator and his guests had arrived at the official residence in the afternoon on Friday and told the guards outside the official residence that he had come to clean the house as the legislator was supposed to return to his official residence on Saturday.
However, the personnel security officer and other guards reached the house in the evening and when they didn’t find the SPO, they called him on his mobile phone which was switched off.
Later, the security personnel also called his family and were informed that he was at the official residence of the assembly member. It was then that the guards started looking for their weapons and found that seven AK-47 rifles and one licenced pistol belonging to the assembly member was missing from the room.
The security personnel then informed the legislator who communicated the same to the police.
Officials said that the SPO was at his home in Shopian from the day when the legislator was in Jammu and they were trying to ascertain as to how the SPO came in touch with the militants in south Kashmir. The police are also looking into how the SPO managed to steal eight weapons when the house was guarded.
Meanwhile, sources said that police have got some clues that the SPO had come to the official residence in a private vehicle and there was a possibility that the weapons were taken in the same vehicle to south Kashmir.
Police spokesman said that a case has been registered at Rajbagh police station and reward money of ₹2 lakh has been announced for giving information about the SPO.