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Moose Wala murder: Two groups of shooters met on May 25 for first time
The shooters stayed in nearby villages in search of a chance to strike while continuously changing hideouts, the Punjab Police SIT probe has found
The two modules of shooters who killed Punjabi singer-politician Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu, aka Sidhu Moose Wala, had teamed up at a dhaba on the national highway near Kotkapura in Faridkot district on May 25 for the first time before moving to Mansa district later in the day to execute the murder, which took place at Jawaharke village on May 29.
In those intervening days, the shooters stayed in nearby villages in search of a chance to strike while continuously changing hideouts, the probe conducted by the Punjab Police special investigation team (SIT) has found.
A police official privy to the probe said: “Accused Manpreet Singh, alias Bhau, had handed over the Toyota Corolla used in the crime to shooter Jagroop Singh Roopa at a dhaba on the national highway at Kotkapura on May 25. Bhau had checked for CCTV cameras in the area and handed over the vehicle at a blind spot.”
According to the officials, Roopa’s interrogation revealed that he was accompanied by another shooter, Manpreet Singh Mannu, and both waited at a dhaba for the other group coming from Haryana. “After Priyavart-led group reached Kotkapura, they left for Mansa. Members of the two groups did not know each other and met for the first time on May 25,” he said. According to the Delhi Police special cell, Priyavrat Fauji, who was arrested from Kutch in Gujarat on May 19, was the main shooter.
“Bhau was involved in the planning of Moose Wala’s killing from the start, and he was continuously taking directions from Canada-based gangster Goldy Brar through phone calls. Even Bhau was never in direct contact with shooters and provided them a vehicle only after getting instructions from Brar,” said the Punjab Police official cited above.
According to police sources, before the murder, the shooters had got close to Moose Wala on three occasions at Atal Khurd, Samaon and Bhikhi villages during their five-day stay in Mansa. “But they did not attack due to security cover. Even Sandeep Singh, alias Kekra, who forwarded real-time information of Moose Wala’s movement, had continuously visited the singer’s village for three days before the murder while the shooters had waited on the main road,” said sources.
The official cited above further said that accused gangster Manpreet Singh Manna had approached another accused, Saraj Sandhu, alias Mintoo, in the Ferozepur jail months before the attack and asked for his assistance in the murder. “Not only recce, Kekra had also provided hideout to the shooters as they stayed at his maternal aunt’s house for a night near Moosa village,” the official said.
