Sweet shop used to run illegal firearms unit in West Bengal

The Kolkata police special task force (STF) has arrested six people and seized 20 semi-finished weapons from an illegal arms manufacturing unit being operated from the facade of a laddu shop in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district.

Fake Indian currency with a face value of ~1 lakh and a lathe machine used to make the weapons were also recovered in the raid at Jagaddal village, which began on Monday noon and continued till late that night.

The accused were produced in a city court on Tuesday.

K Kannan, deputy commissioner (zone 1) of Barrackpore Police, said the raid was conducted jointly by STF sleuths and personnel from Jagaddal police station. “According to information provided to us, a local businessman is behind this illegal arms unit. Raw material for the weapons was brought in from Munger in Bihar,” he said.

All the six arrested hail from Munger, which is regarded as the manufacturing hub of illegal arms. The raid was conducted after three others, who were arrested from Kolkata on Saturday, spilled the beans on the laddu shop during an interrogation.

Police had raided an illegal firearms manufacturing unit at Naldubi in Malda district on May 31, arresting 10 people and recovering a number of semi-manufactured weapons. Officers also seized ~80,000 in cash from the main accused, identified as Akram Sheikh from Rajmahal, Jharkhand. Other materials recovered included a lathe machine, drilling equipment, a substantial quantity of gunpowder, some bullets and mobile phones.

KOLKATA: FAKE INDIAN CURRENCY WITH A FACE VALUE OF ~1 LAKH AND A LATHE MACHINE

USED TO MAKE THE WEAPONS WERE ALSO RECOVERED