Ludhiana’s shoe store owner stabbed to death with ice pick, 2 booked
Ludhiana police probing motive as scooter-borne accused fled with packet containing cash; family claims trader remained unattended on road for half an hour
Panic gripped the area after a 65-year-old shoe store owner was allegedly stabbed to death by two scooter-borne men with an ice pick near his house at Jawahar Nagar Camp here when he resisted an attempt by the duo to snatch a bag containing cash from him, police said on Tuesday.
The police have booked the two accused on charges of murder.
The victim, Manjit Singh, who was also into the money exchange business, was returning home after buying grocery near Kochar Market Chowk on his scooter at 9pm on Monday night when he was stopped by the two masked men near his house.
The assailants asked him to handover the bag of cash he was carrying. When he resisted, the duo stabbed him with an ice pick multiple times, leaving him with fatal wounds. His family members rushed him to Dayanand Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) where the doctors declared him brought dead.
According to eyewitnesses, the locals came out of their houses after hearing commotion 0n the street. When they tried to intervene, the miscreants, wielding a gun, warned them to stay away. They then snatched the bag from Singh and fled.
However, the amount of cash in the bag is not known yet.
Police are investigating the motive of the crime, which they say, could be both robbery and personal enmity.
The incident has happened at a time when security has been beefed up across the city in view of Baisakhi and following intel reports that fugitive radical leader could enter Ludhiana.
Incidentally, the Kochar market police post is just 200 meters away from the murder spot. Former cabinet minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu’s residence is in the same locality.
The eyewitnesses said that Singh was panting and struggling to breathe. They sat him on a chair and informed his family members. As the Ambulance was taking time to reach, they rushed him to the hospital in a private car.
The police have scanned CCTVs installed in the area. Two miscreants were captured in the video footages after the crime.
The police suspect that the miscreants had executed the crime following a conspiracy. The accused were aware that Singh used to carry cash with him while returning home. It is suspected that they were chasing him from his shop in Karimpura market.
Joint commissioner of police (JCP, City) Saumya Mishra said that a murder case under section 302 of the IPC has been lodged against unidentified assailants following the statement of his wife. The police are trying to trace the accused.
The JCP added that the family was yet to inform the police about the amount Singh was carrying.
Singh was handling the business and other chores of the family as his son was bedridden due to a fractured leg. His two daughters are married.
However, family members of the victim alleged that no one came for Singh’s rescue. They said that Singh kept lying on the road for half an hour but no one came forward to help him.
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