Sheetla Mata temple shooting: Two more arrested, total arrests at four for murder

The Palam Vihar crime branch on Sunday arrested two persons from Nakhrola Chowk for shooting dead a 19-year-old man outside the Sheetla Mata temple in Sector 5 on September 3

The Palam Vihar crime branch on Sunday arrested two persons from Nakhrola Chowk in connection with the murder of a 19-year-old man outside the Sheetla Mata temple in Sector 5 on September 3, taking the total arrests in the case to four.

The victim of the murder, Annu Thakur, was a prime suspect in a murder that took place in May 2020 and was out on bail from Karnal jail when the shooting took place during his visit to the temple. (Representational image/Shutterstock)

The police said that the four suspects had planned to commit a series of murders to seek revenge over personal rivalries. The victim of the murder, Annu Thakur, was a prime suspect in a murder that took place in May 2020 and was out on bail from Karnal jail when he was shot dead by the suspects while exiting the temple.

They shot him dead to seek revenge for the murder of their friend, identified as Manan, the police said.

On September 8, the police arrested Deepak Lamba and Shivam, while the two arrested on Sunday were identified as Neeraj alias Baba, of Rewari, and Deepak alias Deepu, of Sidhrawali.

Preet Pal Sangwan, the assistant commissioner of police (crime), said, “They revealed during questioning that they planned to commit four more murders and had killed Thakur as part of their plan. One revolver used in the crime, five live rounds and a scooter were recovered from them.”

Sangwan said that one of the suspects arrested on Sunday had supplied the weapon in exchange for the others’ help to eliminate his rival. They will be questioned and others arrested, he said.