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On birthday, caterer fires in air, uploads video, is arrested
The culprit allegedly walked into the local market near his home, fired a round in the air and then tucked the pistol in his pant. The video uploaded on Tiktok had over half-a-dozen people in the frame.
A caterer who wanted to make his 32nd birthday “special” by firing a pistol in the air and uploading the clip on social media site Tiktok ended up getting arrested after the video reached the police.
The man, Faizan Hussain, had not anticipated that the clip would be shared widely even outside the video-sharing platform, said Mandeep Singh Randhawa, deputy commissioner of police (central district). “When he realised the video had gone viral, he went into hiding,” the DCP said.
Hussain lives with his family in Suiwalan neighbourhood of Chandni Mahal in central Delhi. He assisted his father in the family’s catering business. He turned 32 on Saturday.
Another investigator quoted Hussain as saying he had borrowed the country-made pistol from a friend. “He has refused to divulge the name of the friend, but we are trying,” said another investigator.
On Saturday afternoon, Hussain allegedly walked into the local market near his home, fired a round in the air and then tucked the pistol in his pant. The video uploaded on Tiktok had over half-a-dozen people in the frame.
“Hussain wanted to use the video to get popular. Apart from uploading the video, he shared it a Whatsapp group comprising his close friends,” said the officer.
Before Hussain knew, the video began to get widely shared. “By Saturday night, Hussain knew he had invited trouble. He disappeared from his home and hid at a friend’s house in the neighbourhood,” the officer said.
Around the same time, someone forwarded the video to a subinspector posted at Chandni Mahal police station. “We investigated to identify the neighbourhood where the firing had taken place,” said DCP Randhawa.
By Sunday evening, the police received a tip-off and arrested Hussain. The pistol was with him when the police team searched him, said the officer. He has been booked under the arms act.
