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Chandigarh Police bust gangster-drug nexus, 5 held; arms & heroin recovered
The police have recovered 190 grams of heroin, ₹4,90,000 in drug money, three pistols, two live cartridges and three vehicles, including a Toyota Fortuner, a Volkswagen Vento, and a motorcycle, from their possession.
The Chandigarh Police Operations Cell has arrested five criminals associated with an interstate network of gangsters, drug peddlers and illegal arms suppliers active in the tri-city region. The police have recovered 190 grams of heroin, ₹4,90,000 in drug money, three pistols, two live cartridges and three vehicles, including a Toyota Fortuner, a Volkswagen Vento, and a motorcycle, from their possession.
Geetanjali Khandelwal, superintendent of police operation cell, said three of the arrested accused are directly linked to Lawrence Bishnoi, Raju Basodi and Vakant Garg gangs.
On March 7, a team from the operations cell set up a checkpoint near a school in Sector 48 and apprehended Narinder Kumar alias Aman, 27, a resident of Mauli Jagran. Upon interrogation, Narinder admitted to procuring drugs from Deepak Thapa alias Kancha, a well-known supplier operating in Sector 38 (West), Chandigarh, police said.
“Based on Narinder’s statement, police arrested Thapa the following day. A search of Thapa’s premises led to the recovery of ₹4,40,000 in drug money and a pistol with a live cartridge. Thapa, 26, has a criminal history, including charges of kidnapping and murder. He was recently released on bail after being jailed under the NDPS Act,” the SP said.
“Further investigations led the police to Rajinder Singh alias Goldy, a proclaimed offender involved in multiple criminal cases. Upon his arrest, police seized a pistol and a Toyota Fortuner, which had been purchased using drug money. Rajinder Singh, 30, was previously involved in a murder case in Sector 25, Chandigarh,” the SP added.
Khandelwal said that another accused Dharmender Singh was arrested from Ludhiana in Punjab. Police recovered 140 grams of heroin, ₹50,000 in cash and a Volkswagen Vento used for drug trafficking. Dharmender, 32, was a proclaimed offender in the high-profile Sonu Shah murder case, carried out by the Lawrence Bishnoi gang. To evade capture, he refrained from using a mobile phone, relying solely on internet-based communication to conceal his identity.
Following Dharmender’s confession, police arrested Rahul alias Motouriya, 30, a resident of Punjab, from Sector 56 in Chandigarh.
“Motouriya was found in possession of a country-made pistol with a live cartridge. Motouriya is a proclaimed offender in a Sarangpur murder case and is also suspected of supplying illegal weapons to gangster Vakant Garg. Garg was involved in the assassination of a BSP leader in Ambala. Haryana Police had placed a ₹5 lakh bounty on Garg,” the SP said.
