E-Paper
Financier’s murder in Ludhiana:₹1L reward announced for info on gangster
ATM robbery accused suspected victim of giving tip-off to cops on his whereabouts
Police on Friday announced ₹1lakh reward to anyone providing information on notorious gangster Sukhwinder Singh alias Moni. Singh, along with his unidentified accomplice, had allegedly shot dead a 45-year-old financier, Harjinder Singh alias Jindi, in Jawahar Nagar camp in full public view at Jawahar Nagar Camp here on Thursday night.
The reason behind the murder has not been ascertained yet, but sources said Singh suspected Jindi of tipping off the police about his involvement in an ATM robbery case, wherein the police had announced ₹50,000 reward on information about Singh.
According to the police, Singh along with his accomplices had uprooted an ATM containing ₹23 lakh in Pakhowal on the intervening night of November 1 and 2 last year. A case in this regard was registered at the Sudhar police station. The PAU police had arrested three of the accused including Deepak Billa, Deepak Deepu of Shimlapuri and Ajay Kumar of Ferozepur on November 13, while Singh, his nephew Amrit, Gattu of Ayali village, Sonu Pinna, Rakesh Kumar and Gurjant Singh of Ferozepur are on the run.
A day after the murder, the busy Jawahar Nagar Camp market remained closed on Friday as police investigated the spot for clues. Following the attack, the victim had entered the clinic of a local doctor, but the accused followed him and gunned him down.
The police have recovered five bullet shells from the spot. While fleeing, the accused have opened fire in the air. The accused shouted at the police to get aside. The accused heard saying to people that he has come to kill Jindi don’t dare to intervene. The accused have been captured in the CCTVs installed in the area.
Sahil, the son of the victim, said, “Sukhwinder was known to us as he belongs to the same locality. After he got arrested in a Punjab National Bank robbery case in 2016, we snapped all ties with him. After three members of his gang got arrested for Pakhowal ATM robbery, he started suspecting my father of passing on his information to the police.”
Locals said Harjinder was planning to construct a hotel near the inter-state bus terminal in the city and had bought a piece of land for it as well. Family members said he was about to leave for Nepal for a tour on Thursday, but postponed the plan after death of a relative.
A case has been registered against the accused under Section 302 (murder) and Sections 25, 54 and 59 of the Arms Act at the Division Number 5 police station. Division Number 5 station house officer (SHO) sub-inspector Richa Rani said a hunt is on for the arrest of the accused. “The police have been also investigating to identify the gangster’s accomplice involved in the murder,” she said.
