Friends shoot dead 30-year-old man over sale of cars; two arrested

They said the arrested men were suspicious that the victim had earned more profit by selling two SUVs recently and did not share the money with them

Two men were arrested on Wednesday on charges of murdering their 30-year-old friend in Raj Nagar Extension (RNE) on Tuesday, allegedly following a dispute over the sale and purchase of cars, senior police officers said, adding that a third suspect remains to be arrested.

The two suspects in police custody on Wednesday. (Sakib Ali/HT Photo)

They said the arrested men were suspicious that the victim had earned more profit by selling two SUVs recently and did not share the money with them.

The police identified the arrested as Indirapuram resident Sumit Kumar, 37, and RNE resident Ankit Tyagi, 29. The third absconding suspect was identified as Vijay Kumar.

According to the FIR lodged by Mohammad Mahroof, brother of deceased Mohammad Mehboob, Sumit called his brother around 1am on Tuesday and asked him to come near a mall in RNE.

“Kumar called him repeatedly and sought his help after telling him that he had picked up a fight with Tyagi and Vijay. So, my brother went there in his Swift car along with our nephew Shoaib. There, the three men were present along with their two cars, a Scorpio and a Fortuner. They pulled my brother out of the car and started beating him and Tyagi also shot him. My nephew rushed Mehboob to a hospital but the doctors declared him dead,” Mahroof said.

“It was a planned attack, because he had lent about ₹5 lakh to Sumit and wanted it back. So, there was a dispute and the suspects wanted him dead,” Mahroof claimed.

Based on Mahroof’s complaint, an FIR under Indian Penal Code section 302 (murder) and 120b (criminal conspiracy) was registered at Nandgram police station, naming the three men as suspects.

The police launched an investigation and arrested two suspects and also unearthed another motive for the murder.

“These men were engaged in the sale/purchase of cars. The suspects told us that during previous occasion, the deceased has sold a Creta at a higher price and pocketed the profit. They further said he also sold one Thar SUV at a higher price and pocketed that money as well. This resulted in a dispute as the suspects were demanding their share and the dispute ended in murder,” said Dharam Pal, station house officer, Nandgram police station.

Police said Mehboob was fired upon twice and one of the bullets hit him, leading to his death.

“As soon as he got out of his car, the suspects fired at him twice and one hit the victim, killing him. We are yet to recover the murder weapon. Our teams are trying to trace the absconding suspect. Investigation is underway in the case,” said Ajit Kumar, assistant commissioner of police (crime).