2 held for illegal arms supply

 New Delhi: In a joint crackdown by the Delhi and Uttar Pradesh police, two suspected illegal arms manufacturers were arrested in Meerut, police said on Tuesday.The accused, identified as Sameer (25) and Furkan (45), were facing charges of robbery, theft and carrying a total reward of Rs 1.25 lakh each -- Rs 1 lakh from Delhi police and Rs 25,000 from their UP counterpart. 

Based on a tip-off, the police set a trap near Suhel Garden in Meerut, where the accused duo arrived on a scooter at about 10.55 pm. When the accused were asked to surrender, they opened fire on a police team, Pramod Singh Kushwah, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) said. In total, 13 rounds of fire were exchanged between the police and the accused, during which Sameer sustained an injury on his left leg. 

He was rushed to a government hospital in Meerut, where he is recuperating, police said, adding that two pistols and five live cartridges were recovered from their possession, police said. Six rounds were fired by the accused while seven were fired by the police team. Three bullets hit the safety jackets of three police personnel, he said.

After Sameer's injury, the police managed to overpower the accused, Kushwah said. During interrogation, Furkan confessed to running an illegal firearms manufacturing unit in a house in Meerut, where he had commissioned Munger-based persons with expertise in arms manufacturing, the DCP said.
 
The accused duo confessed to their involvement in case of illegal arms supply in Delhi, he said. One semi-automatic pistol (.32) with three live cartridges was recovered from Sameer and another pistol with two live cartridges was recovered from Furkan. The scooter was also seized, Kushwah said. On October 9, four Munger-based arms suppliers were arrested from Meerut city in connection with the same case.

Eighty-four pistols, 40 magazines and other raw materials were seized from their possession, the senior officer said.  Sameer has been previously arrested in seven cases and Furkan has been involved in four criminal cases, he said. Earlier, Furkan used to supply illegal arms from Munger. He started his own arms manufacturing unit in Meerut a few months ago.