Firing at Salman Khan’s house: Sixth accused arrested in Haryana

Harpal Singh alias Harry, 25, was arrested in Haryana on Monday night. His job was to collect extortion money for the Lawrence Bishnoi gang

MUMBAI: The Mumbai police’s crime branch has arrested one more member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang in connection with the April 14 firing at actor Salman Khan’s Bandra residence. Harpal Singh alias Harry, 25, was arrested in Haryana on Monday night.

Mumbai, India – May 14, 2024: Mumbai crime branch has arrested another member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang in connection with the firing outside Bollywood superstar Salman Khan's residence in Bandra, is the sixth person to be arrested in the firing case, has been produced in the Court, in Mumbai, India, on Tuesday, May 14, 2024. (Photo by Bhushan Koyande/HT Photo)

According to the police, Singh was involved in financing the two shooters, Vicky Kumar Gupta and Sagar Kumar Pal, through another arrested accused, Mohammed Rafiq Sardar Choudhari. Singh’s job was to collect extortion money for the Bishnoi gang and distribute it per his instructions, said a police officer.

Choudhari, who was arrested on April 30 in Rajasthan, is in police custody till May 16. The police claimed he was in touch with Rohit Godara, a trusted aide of the incarcerated gangster. Godara is also a wanted accused in the case, said a crime branch officer.

Singh, the police said, was involved in two previous cases. He and four others were arrested in Raipur, Chhattisgarh, last year for extortion and firing. Singh got bail in that case but was later arrested in Haryana for preparation of dacoity.

Singh’s name cropped up during Choudhari’s interrogation. After recording the video of Khan’s residence, Galaxy Apartments, Choudhari sent it to Singh who then forwarded it to Bishnoi’s brother Anmol Bishnoi through the Telegram messaging app. During the interrogation, the police learnt that around ₹4 lakh was given to Choudhari, Gupta and Pal in March and April, added the official.

Singh was brought to Mumbai on Tuesday, where he was produced in court and remanded to police custody till May 22. Choudhari was arrested after Gupta and Pal revealed his name during their interrogation. Choudhari then revealed the involvement of five more members of the Bishnoi gang, all from Rajasthan, in the conspiracy to fire at the actor’s residence.

The crime branch has seized Choudhari’s mobile phone and retrieved several deleted videos and photos with the help of technical experts. Choudhari confessed that he had collected ₹3 lakh in cash from Singh and given ₹2 lakh to the two shooters.

Apart from Singh, Choudhuri, Gupta and Pal, the police had arrested two other accused in the case: Anuj Thapan, who died by suicide on May 1 while he was in the custody of the crime branch, and Sonu Subhashchandra Bishnoi, who is from Punjab. On March 15, Thapan and Sonu Bishnoi met Gupta and Pal in Panvel and handed over two pistols and 38 live rounds to them, said the police.

In the early hours of Sunday, April 14, Gupta and Pal shot at Khan’s first-floor apartment and also fired several rounds in the air before fleeing on a motorbike. No one was injured in the incident.