Man opens fire at Shalimar Bagh restaurant, cops probe extortion angle

Three men had a narrow escape in northwest Delhi’s Shalimar Bagh after an unidentified man opened fire at a restaurant on Sunday night, prompting the police to probe

Three men had a narrow escape in northwest Delhi’s Shalimar Bagh after an unidentified man opened fire at a restaurant on Sunday night, prompting the police to probe the extortion angle and the role of a jailed gangster, allegedly involved in more than 15 crimes — including extortion and murder.

HT Image

Police said that the incident was captured on CCTVs installed at the restaurant and adjacent shops. The footage shows a man with a white towel around his face whipping out a gun and firing towards the restaurant, where three men are seen sitting . The footage shows the man firing twice, while an aide stands behind him.

After the firing, the duo flee on a bike, on which a third associate was waiting on the road, the footage shows. Another video footage shows that one of the bullets narrowly misses the three men sitting in the restaurant and smashes the glass window behind them. The three men immediately duck and take cover ,as a bullet whizzes past them and hits the glass window.

When contacted over the phone, the restaurant owner refused to share details regarding the incident citing safety concerns. He, however, said, “I have lodged a case and I am satisfied with the police probe.”

Deputy commissioner of police (northwest) Vijayanta Arya confirmed that the firing incident took place around 9.30pm at a food outlet in Shalimar Bagh area. The owner of the restaurant was present at the outlet when the firing took place. The DCP, however, did not specify if the owner was among the three men who was targeted and survived the attack.

DCP Arya said that a police team reached the spot soon after and during preliminary enquiry, the restaurant owner told them about an extortion demand of R2 lakh that he had received some days ago but had not reported to the police.

“The owner told us that two men had come to his restaurant some days ago and asked him to speak to someone over the cellphone. The person on the call took the name of a jailed extortionist and demanded R2 lakh. The owner suspects that the firing could be connected with the extortion demand,” said the DCP.

A case under Sections 387 (putting the person in fear of death or of grievous hurt, in order to commit extortion), 506 (criminal intimidation) of Indian Penal Code along with Arms Act was registered at the Shalimar Bagh police station on the complaint of the food outlet’s owner.

DCP Arya said that multiple teams have been formed to probe the case and nab the suspects.