Commuters and public were taken by surprise when a special squad of the city police in plainclothes scuffled with armed gangsters on the middle of a busy road in broad daylight near the Badambadi bus terminus here on Friday afternoon. The police team, however, emerged victorious overpowering a noted gangster and one of his associates, much to the relief of the anxious onlookers,
“A special squad of the city police arrested gangster Yunis Khan of Jagatsinghpur and his associate Sandip Behera after overpowering them while they were trying to run away,” said city DCP Sanjib Arora, adding that two pistols and five rounds of bullets were seized from them. No exchange of fire took place, he further informed.
Khan was wanted by the city police in several cases of extortion pending in various police stations. He is also accused in tender fixing incidents. Getting a tipoff that Khan and his associates were near the Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) office at Bikash Bhavan, the police squad moved swiftly to the spot in plainclothes.
Eyewitnesses said the policemen pounced upon the gangsters numbering about six as they were trying to escape by three motorcycles. A scuffle ensued between the gangsters and the police in the middle of the road for over a minute and, finally, an injured Khan and his associate were captured. Khan received injuries in his head and legs during the fight.