|
The Delhi Police Special Cell has arrested an active member of the Hashim Baba gang and thereby foiled an extortion bid of Rs 50 lakh.
The accused has been identified as Areeb alias Asif (24), a resident of Kardampuri, Delhi, police said on Thursday. A sophisticated pistol with four live cartridges was recovered from his possession. He was planning to extort Rs 50 lakhs from a businessman of Central Delhi with his other gang members on the direction of Hashim Baba, they said. According to Deputy Commissioner of Police Special Cell, Amit Kaushik, the Trans Yamuna range of Special Cell, has been assigned the task of apprehending the active gang members operating in area, wanted and rewarded criminals involved in sensational/heinous cases of murder, attempt to murder, extortion, robbery, carjacking, special acts. So, the team has been keeping watch over the activities of such criminals. In this process, a team led by Sub Inspector Niraj Singh was working on the active gang members, he said. The team collected and verified information about many such gang members. After painstaking efforts of several days, a specific information was received that an active member of gang namely Areeb would come to Kardampuri Puliya to meet someone and he is also carrying weapon to commit crime with his other associates, DCP Kaushik added. Acting swiftly on the information, team laid a trap and apprehended the accused. During his search, a sophisticated pistol with four live cartridges and details including phone number, address and photo of a businessman of Patel Nagar, Central Delhi were found in his possession. Accordingly, a case u/s 25 Arms Act PS Special Cell was registered, and the accused, Areeb, was arrested. On interrogation, he disclosed that he was directed by other senior gang members of his gang to extort Rs 50 lakhs from the businessman by firing outside his office. Further investigation in this matter is in process, he said. Areeb was born in Kardampuri, Delhi. He has studied up to 10th standard in a government school in Yamuna Vihar, Delhi. In 2018, when he turned 18, he came into contact with one Salman Bhonchi (an active member of Hashim Baba gang) and through him he came into contact with Hashim Baba and joined his gang. He was first arrested in 2020 in a case of firing and extortion from a paint shop owner of PS Jafrabad along with other gang members, police said. (ANI)
|
