Gangster who escaped from UP prison by scaling wall arrested in Old Delhi

Munshad was arrested and a loaded pistol with three bullets was recovered from him. Police said Munshad and his associates had scaled the boundary wall of the Mainpuri jail in March 2017 and fled prison.

A gangster who escaped from Uttar Pradesh’s Mainpuri jail in March was arrested by the Delhi Police crime branch after a brief shootout in the lanes of Old Delhi.

Munshad and his associates had scaled the boundary wall of the Mainpuri jail in March 2017 and fled prison.

Police said 27-year-old Munshad is a member of the Mukim Kala gang and had a reward of Rs 15,000 on his arrest. He has more than 20 criminal cases such as murder, extortion, robbery, rioting against him. Police recovered a pistol and three cartridges from him.

Deputy commissioner of police (DCP), crime, Rajesh Deo said the crime branch had information about members of the Mukim Kala gang who were present in the Jama Masjid area.

Deo said crime branch officials reached the spot around 7.30 pm after a tip-off and waited for the men. Near Jama Masjid, police saw the three men and asked them for their identity.

“When we stopped them, they panicked. One of them, whom we later identified as Munshad, whipped out his pistol and fired at constables Parvinder and Prashant who managed to dodge the bullets. They ran towards the market but our officers chased them. One of them tried to fire again at the police team near Jama Masjid but our officers overpowered him. The other two managed to flee,” said DCP Deo.

The Uttar Pradesh police had announced a reward of Rs 15,000 on his arrest. Munsad told the police his gang was active in the National Capital Region and parts of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.

The gang has been involved in robbing jewellers of UP and Haryana. After murdering two Kairana-based businessmen in 2014, the Kala gang started spreading their extortion racket in Kairana.

After escaping from prison, he and his gang members had come to Shakurpur and were staying at a flat owned by a man named Ayub. Police are probing Ayub’s role.