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Pune police arrest two ‘most wanted’ by NIA; recover live cartridge, four mobiles & drone material
According to officials, Yunus Khan and Yakub Saki hail from Ratlam in Madhya Pradesh (MP) and are graphic designers with a bounty of ₹5 lakh each on their head
PUNE
The Pune police have seized a live cartridge, two holsters, four mobile phones, white coloured pills, parts used to make a drone, a copy of Aadhar, and a laptop from two suspects arrested early Wednesday morning, officials said. The duo - identified as Mohammad Imran Mohammad Yunus Khan, 23, and Mohammad Yunus Mohammad Yakub Saki, 24 – are on the ‘most wanted’ list of the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
According to officials, Yunus Khan and Yakub Saki hail from Ratlam in Madhya Pradesh (MP) and are graphic designers with a bounty of ₹5 lakh each on their head. Yunus Khan and Yakub Saki were arrested from the Kothrud area during night patrolling and produced before the court of judicial magistrate first class (JMFC) A C Birajdar in the afternoon. The court remanded them to police custody till July 25.
According to the police, three suspects were intercepted while patrolling in the Kothrud area at around 2.45 am on Tuesday. Police constables Pradeep Chavan and Amol Nazan caught the trio. When they were taken for house search, they tried to escape but the police team managed to nab two of them while the third fled the scene.
Retesh Kumaar, Pune city police commissioner said, “During night patrolling in the Kothrud area, two of our constables arrested two persons wanted by the NIA who have a reward of ₹5 lakh each on their head. The hunt is on for their accomplice and we will soon arrest him.”
According to Kumaar, the accused were residing in the Kondhwa area of Pune city since the last 15 to 16 months and further investigation is underway.
While seeking police custody of Yunus Khan and Yakub Saki, Kothrud police station in-charge, Hemant Patil, in his remand application before the court, said that the police have recovered a live round and a pistol pouch among other things from the duo. The police are investigating the drone box and drone material kept inside it. As the drone has not been found, an interrogation is necessary to find out where the same has been hidden by the suspects, Patil said.
Patil submitted that details of the third (absconding) accused can be found only by interrogating the arrested accused who have been staying in the city for the past one-and-a-half years, and a detailed investigation of their mobile phones and electronic equipment is essential to find out who they contacted.
Defence counsel Yashpal Purohit and advocate Saurabh More said that the present case is different from the NIA case. “The police have already seized 42 articles and there is no need for further interrogation,” More argued.
However, the court observed that the police custody of Yunus Khan and Yakub Saki is required as they have been booked for serious crimes under the UAPA Act. They have been found to be associated with SUFA, a terrorist organisation based in MP and inspired by ISIS and allegedly hatched a bomb blast conspiracy in Jaipur, Rajasthan.
Whereas the Pule police have recovered significant evidence including a live round, four mobile phones and a laptop from Yunus Khan and Yakub Saki. A case has been registered at the Kothrud police station under sections 468 (forgery for the purpose of cheating), 379 (punishment for theft), 511 (attempting to carry out offences) and 34 (criminal act carried out by several persons) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC); sections 3 (25) and 4 (25) of the Arms Act; and sections 37 (1), 37 (3) and 135 of the Maharashtra Police Act. The police are on the lookout for the third suspect who is absconding.
