A suspected cattle smuggler was injured while three others escaped after an exchange of fire with crime branch teams following a chase on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway in Nuh early Tuesday, police said.
Investigators said seven cattle, allegedly being smuggled from Haryana to Rajasthan for illegal slaughter, were rescued from a pickup van in which they had been tied cruelly. Police also seized the vehicle and recovered an illegal country-made pistol and an empty cartridge.
The injured suspect, a resident of Bhutkawas village in Rajasthan’s Alwar district, was shot in the leg during the shootout and was admitted to Shaheed Hasan Khan Mewati Government Medical College for treatment.
Nuh additional superintendent of police (ASP) YVR Shashi Shekhar said two crime branch units had set up a checkpoint around 5am near the Basai Meo village cut on the expressway after receiving information about cattle being smuggled to Rajasthan.
“The checkpoint was on a tip-off about suspects transporting cattle from Haryana to Rajasthan in a pickup van with a car acting as a pilot escort,” he said.
“After 10-15 minutes of waiting, a car followed by a pickup vehicle approached from the wrong side of the expressway. Both vehicles were asked to stop, but the drivers accelerated and fled after ramming the barricades, which triggered a chase,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}“After 10-15 minutes of waiting, a car followed by a pickup vehicle approached from the wrong side of the expressway. Both vehicles were asked to stop, but the drivers accelerated and fled after ramming the barricades, which triggered a chase,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}According to the ASP, the occupants of the escort car escaped under cover of darkness while police continued chasing the pickup van. Near Arya Samaj temple in Basai Meo village, the vehicle crashed into a roadside truck.
“During the chase, those in the van opened fire on the police. After crashing into the truck, the suspects opened fire again to escape when police retaliated, injuring one of the four suspects after he was shot in the leg,” Shekhar said.
Police said the identities of the three other suspects in the van and those travelling in the escort car have been established. A case was registered under section 109(1) (attempt to murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Arms Act at Sadar Ferozepur Jhirka police station.
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