Delhi Police Special Cell busted an interstate illegal firearms syndicate, held two

New Delhi, October 26

Delhi Police Special Cell busted an interstate illegal firearms syndicate, held two Mewat based notorious firerms suppliers. 

The accused were identified as Shakir 

and Zunaid Khan from Nuh in Haryana.

The special cell in a an operation arrested the duo from Surajkund Turning at MB Road, in Delhi. 

The oolice sezied 15 semi automatic pistols of .32  alongwith 30 live cartridges from the arrested persons. Both have been involved in procuring firearms and ammunitions from arms manufacturers cum suppliers of Khargone in Madhya Pradesh and further supplying the same to criminals in Delhi NCR, Haryana, Punjab & UP for last 3 years. 

DCP (Special Cell) Jasmeet Singh stated that the special cell had received specific inputs that the syndicate in Delhi NCR being run by Mewat (Haryana) based Shakir in association with other members of the syndicate. After mounting manual surveillance on the duo about activities of this syndicate, police got the drip of their syndicate. The agency received input that the duo were going to come at Surajkund Turning between 4 PM to 5 PM to deliver the supply of firearms and ammunition to Zunaid Khan,  one of his contacts in Delhi. The officials added that at about 5.25 PM, a suspicious person carrying a backpack was spotted coming towards Surajkund Turning, MB Road.  He was identified as Shakir by the informer. After five minutes, another person (identified as Zunaid Khan) arrived near Shakir who handed over a bag to Zunaid Khan. 

Both were surrounded and overpowered by the members of team.  From the search, 15 semi-automatic pistols of .32 and 30 live cartridges were recovered from duo i.e. 10 pistols with 30 live cartridges from Shakir and 5 pistols were recovered from Zunaid Khan. 

A case under section 25(8) of Arms (Amendment) Act, 2019 has been registered in Special Cell.  In this newly incorporated section of law, there is a provision of minimum sentence of 10 years for arms trafficking which can be extended upto life imprisonment and punishable with fine also.

During the interrogation, Shakir has disclosed that he had procured the recovered pistols and cartridges from an illegal firearms manufacturer of Khargone in MP. He has further disclosed that he alongwith his other associates including Zunaid Khan has been indulging in the supply of illegal firearms and ammunition in Delhi NCR, Haryana, Punjab and UP for the last 3 years.  He has also disclosed that he was lured by a person of an adjoining village to associate with his arms trafficking syndicate about 7 years back. Initially, Shakir worked as carrier for him for 3 years but subsequently he developed his own network of arms trafficking.  Zunaid Khan has disclosed that he was lured by Shakir to join his syndicate and to help him in his arms trafficking activities.  Greed of easy money made Zunaid Khan to associate with Shakir in his illegal firearms trafficking activities.  

Both have disclosed to have been indulging in supply of firearms to gangsters and hardened criminals in Delhi NCR and arms peddlers in UP, Haryana, Punjab and MP for a considerable period.  Shakir has further disclosed that he used to get a pistol from MP for at lower price and he used to further sell it to Zunaid Khan with little profit.  Zunaid Khan used to further sell a pistol at higher price to the criminals in Delhi NCR and adjoining states of UP and Haryana.  It has also been revealed that both the arrested persons have already supplied more than 400 firearms in Delhi NCR during the last 3 years. Shakir has been found previously arrested in a case under arms act in his parent police station in Haryana in the year 2013.

The police are now zeroing in on  remaining members of this syndicate.