Eight firearms seized, one held

The Mumbai police crime branch has recovered eight firearms and arrested one person who had brought the consignment from Uttar Pradesh.

The Mumbai police crime branch has recovered eight firearms and arrested one person who had brought the consignment from Uttar Pradesh.

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Unit XI of crime branch arrested Chandrapal Ayodhya Singh (40) on July 26 from a mall in Malad after with two pistols and six guns, known as kattas, were recovered from his possession. With festivals such as Ganapati and Janmashtami around, the police have been on a high alert.

Senior Police Inspector of Unit XI Feroze Patel received information that someone was arriving in Mumbai with firearms, with a purpose of allegedly selling them.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Nisar Tamboli said that Singh was a civil contractor who undertook small contracts for BSNL.

“He had run into some losses and so to earn quick money he tried to sell these weapons,” Tamboli said adding that this could be his first offence.

“The investigations are on,” he added.

A source said Singh had procured these weapons for Rs 500 a piece and would have sold them for anywhere between Rs 1,000 to Rs 3,000. “The price goes up if the demand is more,” he said.

Singh, a resident of Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh, has been remanded to police custody until August 5.