New Delhi, March 3
An associate of foreign-based gangster Rohit Godara has been arrested for allegedly firing at a car carrying lawyer Deepak Khatri, who is associated with jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, police said on Tuesday.
Khatri was tracked through his social media profile, where the accused, identified as Rohit Solanki, came to know that he visits the Marghat Wale Hanuman Temple every Tuesday through reels and leaves only when the temple is closed, Joint Commissioner of Police (Central) Madhur Verma said.
Solanki was arrested at Delhi Airport on March 2 after he was deported from Thailand due to procedural issues.
The arrest comes a week after Khatri and his associates were shot at near the ISBT in the Kashmere Gate area of north Delhi.
According to police, Solanki was involved in the conspiracy and execution of the attack that took place late at night near the Marghat Wale Hanuman Temple on February 25. He was in direct touch with Godara through the Signal app, Verma said.
Five people were travelling in the vehicle when unidentified assailants opened fire. Eyewitnesses alleged that there were three shooters, and the hunt for the remaining two is on, he said.
The police are also tracking down the weapon, SIM, and vehicle supplier.
One of the occupants, Sandeep, suffered two bullet injuries on his back and was admitted to a hospital. He was later stated to be stable and out of danger.
An FIR was earlier registered at Kashmere Gate Police Station under sections 109(1) (attempt to murder) and 3(5) (criminal conspiracy) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with relevant provisions of the Arms Act.
Police had said that gangster Naveen Boxer, associated with Goldy Brar-Rohit Godara, had claimed responsibility for the attack through a social media post in which threats were issued to Khatri.
Investigators scanned CCTV footage from the surrounding areas and examined technical evidence to identify the attackers and trace their escape route.
Further details are awaited.
Highlights
A pistol, allegedly found by a delivery person in an abandoned scooter near Rajghat here, was used in a February 25 shooting incident targeting an advocate linked to jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, a senior police officer said on Tuesday.
The firearm, a loaded foreign-made pistol, was recovered by police after the 20-year-old delivery worker sustained a gunshot injury after the weapon accidentally went off.
“The recovery followed an incident near the Ghazipur vegetable market where Rajkumar, employed with a private logistics firm in Noida, was hit in the leg after the weapon went off inside a truck,” the officer said.
Police said Rajkumar allegedly found the pistol from a scooter without a number plate which was parked near Rajghat. He picked up the pistol and kept it in the delivery truck, where it went off by accident — injuring him in the leg. He was rushed to a nearby hospital.
Upon receiving information, police reached the hospital and recovered the pistol on the instance of Rajkumar’s companion.
During inspection, police traced the abandoned scooter and impounded it.
Police matched the recovered pistol with ballistic evidence from the February 25 shooting case involving an advocate associated with Bishnoi.
“The weapon recovered from the scooter has been confirmed to have been used in the February 25 firing incident, Further investigation is underway,” the officer said.
PTI
