Gunrunner held with improvised carbine, 40 pistols, 20 magazines

One improvised carbine (automatic rifle), 40 illegally made semi-automatic pistols and 20 pistol magazines were seized from an alleged supplier of illegal firearms

One improvised carbine (automatic rifle), 40 illegally made semi-automatic pistols and 20 pistol magazines were seized from an alleged supplier of illegal firearms who was arrested after a brief chase in east Delhi’s Ghazipur in the early hours of Tuesday, the police said.

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The arrested man, identified as Irshad Khan, 34, is part of an interstate gang involved in the sale of such weapons, the police said. The members of this gang purchase firearms from illegal gun manufacturing factories in Madhya Pradesh and sell them to criminals operating in Delhi and adjoining states, the police said, adding that Khan has supplied more than 100 such weapons to criminals in the last one year alone.

According to the police, the firearms were hidden in a cavity of the CNG cylinder fitted in the car’s boot, which the alleged gunrunner was driving at the time of his arrest. The opening of this specially made cavity was concealed under the iron strap used to fasten CNG cylinders in car boots, the police said.

Naik said Khan’s arrest came after the crime branch team received specific information about a gunrunner, who had procured huge quantity of illegal firearms from a supplier in Madhya Pradesh and that he would deliver the consignment to someone in Delhi’s Ghazipur. It was learnt that the delivery of the consignment would be done in the early hours of Tuesday, he said.

“Accordingly, the team laid a trap at Ghazipur roundabout. Around 2am, the suspect was spotted driving an i10 car and was flagged down. However, he accelerated and fled towards Ghazipur vegetable market. Our team chased and intercepted the car. The suspect tried to flee, but was overpowered,” Naik said.

The police said the car was thoroughly searched and one improvised carbine, 40 countrymade pistols and 20 magazines were recovered from a CNG cylinder fitted in the boot.

Khan’s interrogation revealed that he got into the illegal weapons business by some criminals whom he had met in Tihar jail while serving time in auto-lifting cases. “Khan purchased a pistol for ₹15,000 to ₹20,000 and sold it for ₹30,000 to ₹40,000, depending on its quality and the client’s need. Khan told us that once a weapon was sold to a criminal the details of the firearms’ supplier spread among other criminals. Subsequent demand fuelled their illegal trade,” the DCP added.