A 35-year-old alleged member of a gang of cattle rustlers, which had recently opened fire on a PCR van in South Delhi area, has been arrested by the Crime Branch in the early hours of Thursday. The accused, identified as Jamshed (35), is a resident of Faridabad, Haryana and was arrested from Fatehpur Beri area. The Mahindra Bolero, which was used by the gang when it opened fire on the police, has also been recovered.
The incident took place on the intervening night of April 23 and April 24 when personnel of a PCR van noticed a Mahindra Bolero being driven dangerously. When it was signalled to stop, the occupants sped in a bid to get away. The PCR van promptly flashed a message on the wireless set about the incident and all PCR vans in the area were alerted. Another PCR van noticed the said vehicle in Jaitpur area and tried to intercept it.
“The occupants of the vehicle then made a daring attempt and fired shots on the second PCR van and its staff. The PCR staff did retaliate but the accused had managed to escape,” said a senior police official.
Separate cases, one at New Friends Colony police station and another at Jaitpur police station, were registered and investigation was taken up. Police were tipped off on Wednesday that the gang, which was involved, would be coming to Fatehpur Beri to steal cattle at midnight following which a trap was laid. “At around 1.20 am, a Mahindra Bolero was seen coming from Gurgaon side. It was signalled to stop but sensing the presence of police, the vehicle driver slammed the accelerator,” the official said.
In a bid to flee, the driver ran the vehicle into the bushes and its occupants tried to escape from there. The vehicle driver was later identified as Jamshed by the team while other members of the gang managed to escape under the cover of darkness, police said.