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Member of Gogi gang arrested after shoot-out near Delhi’s Bhalswa landfill
A 32-year-old suspected member of a gang formerly run by slain gangster Jitender Maan alias Gogi was arrested after a gunfight with a special cell team of the Delhi Police near the Bhalswa landfill close to Outer Ring Road in northwest Delhi around midnight on Monday, police said
A 32-year-old suspected member of a gang formerly run by slain gangster Jitender Maan alias Gogi was arrested after a gunfight with a special cell team of the Delhi Police near the Bhalswa landfill close to Outer Ring Road in northwest Delhi around midnight on Monday, police said.
The arrested man, identified as Bhagwan Singh alias Mukesh, who was wanted in connection with a three-month-old case of kidnapping and murdering Sandeep alias Paji--a member of rival gang led by jailed gangster Sunil Maan alias Tillu--suffered a bullet injury to his left leg in the shootout. Five bullets were exchanged between Mukesh and the special cell team, three of which were fired by the police.
“By arresting Mukesh we have averted a possible gang war in Delhi since he was on a mission to kill some members of the rival Tillu gang. Two persons--Deepak Pakasma and Chandan--were his prime targets. We recovered one semi-automatic pistol with three cartridges and a stolen Apache motorcycle that Mukesh was riding at the time,” said deputy commissioner of police (special cell) Jasmeet Singh.
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The decade-long rivalry between Gogi and Tillu gangs has claimed nearly two dozen lives, including that of Gogi, so far. Gogi was shot dead by two members of Tillu gang inside a courtroom in Delhi’s Rohini where he had been brought for a hearing on September 24 last year. He was shot 18 times by two gunmen who were dressed as lawyers. They were gunned down at the same spot by the police team that was escorting Gogi.
DCP Singh said that the team had been receiving information for the past two months that Mukesh was frequenting outer Delhi areas to commit crimes. On Monday, the team learnt that he would be coming near Bhalswa landfill to meet his associate around midnight. Accordingly, a trap was laid and at 12.10am on Tuesday, the team spotted the suspect on a motorcycle.
“The suspect was signalled to stop. However, he tried to speed away and fired three bullets at the police party. The team fired two bullets in self-defence. One bullet hit Mukesh’s left leg; he fell off the motorcycle and was overpowered. He was admitted to Babu Jagjivan Ram Memorial Hospital for treatment,” the DCP said.
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The DCP said that Mukkesh was involved in seven crimes, including two murders, two attempts to murder and two attacks on police personnel. In 2014, Mukesh and his associates had allegedly attacked a then station house officer (SHO) of a police station in northwest Delhi. They had also damaged the SHO’s official vehicle. In 2016, Mukesh was arrested and later convicted in a case of murder that was registered at Rohini police station.
“During his stay in jail, Mukesh came in contact with the members of Gogi gang and joined them. After Gogi’s killing, his gang members have been looking for opportunities for revenge. On May 23, Mukesh and his associates abducted Tillu gang member Sandeep alias Paji from Shahabad Dairy area, shot him dead and threw his body in a drain a few kilometres away. The body was discovered two days later. A case was registered and Mukesh was named,” said a special cell officer, who was part of the team that arrested Mukesh.
