Chandigarh/Amritsar, April 14
In a major breakthrough Amritsar Commissionerate Police has busted a cross-border illegal arms smuggling module with the arrest of three accused persons and recovered six sophisticated pistols from their possession, said Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Gaurav Yadav here on Tuesday.
Those arrested have been identified as Mangal Singh alias Manga (30), a resident of village Kajikot in Tarn Taran; Pranav Sharma alias Laddu (24), a resident of Orchid Valley in Chheharta, Amritsar; and Gaurav Rana (25), a resident of Guru Nanak Avenue in Amritsar. The recovered pistols include two Made in China .30 bore, one Zigana .30 bore and three .30 bore pistols.
DGP Gaurav Yadav said that preliminary investigation has revealed that the accused were in contact with Pakistan-based smugglers through social media platforms. The illegal weapons were being sent through drones from across the border, and the accused used to pick up consignments and supply them to criminal elements, he said.
The DGP said that further investigation is underway to establish forward and backward linkages to dismantle this entire network. Sharing operational details, Commissioner of Police (CP) Amristar Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said that in a targeted operation based on secret information, police teams arrested suspect Mangal Singh alias Manga and recovered one .30 bore pistol from his possession. On his disclosure, co-accused Pranav Sharma alias Laddu and Gaurav Rana were arrested, and five additional pistols were recovered from their possession, he said.
The CP said that accused Pranav alias Laddu and Gaurav Rana have criminal history with cases under Arms Act registered against them. Both the accused are also wanted in a case pertaining to committing robbery at gun-point registered at Police Station Ranjit Avenue, he added.
