A month after a 35-year-old gym owner was shot dead in south Delhi’s Greater Kailash 1, the 20-year-old prime accused, Madhur alias Ayaan, was arrested on Saturday evening after a brief exchange of fire in Narela, a senior police officer said.
Madhur had rained nearly a dozen bullets on Nadir Shah, the gym owner, allegedly on instructions by jailed gangster Hashim Baba. Police had acted upon a tip-off about Madhur being available in Narela on Saturday evening and around 9pm, he was spotted on a Honda Hornet bike.
On September 12, Nadir Shah was standing with a friend outside his gym in GK-1, when three bike-borne assailants came and one of them, later identified as Madhur, opened fire at him before fleeing the spot with his accomplices. Shah suffered four to five bullets. At least three special cell personnel, who were present inside the gym to meet their informer, rushed out after hearing the gunshots. They immediately took Shah to a nearby private hospital, where he succumbed to injuries.
The brazen shooting was captured on CCTV cameras installed in the neighbourhood. Minutes after the shooting that claimed Shah, a post was shared on social media by a user claiming to be fugitive gangster Rohit Godara. The post said that Shah was killed because jailed gangster Samir Baba alias Hashim Baba had informed that the gym owner had been interfering in their businesses. Godara is a member of the syndicate led by jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi.
A case of firing and murder was registered at the Greater Kailash police station and it was transferred to the special cell for further investigation. During the probe, the special cell arrested seven people, identified as Sajid,37, Naveen Baliyan, 33, Akash Yadav, 24, Pankaj Kumar,18, and Sachin Yadav, 19, Nitalesh Tiwari, 20, and Vishal Varma, 19, in connection with the murder. Their interrogation revealed that Madhur was the main shooter, the police said.
Commissioner of police (special cell) RP Upadhyay said that multiple raids were conducted in Haryana, Punjab, Uttarakhand, and Uttar Pradesh to nab Madhur.
“Around 9pm, the special cell members spotted Madhur riding a Honda Hornet bike. They signaled him to stop and surrender. However, he opened fire at the police in a bid to flee the area. We fired six rounds in retaliation, and he got injured. He was admitted to a nearby government hospital, where he is currently undergoing treatment,” said Upadhyay, adding that one pistol and eight cartridges have been recovered.
Police said that Madhur’s whereabouts during his time on the run are being verified. His interrogation will also help the investigating team ascertain the exact sequence of events leading to Shah’s murder and the entire conspiracy behind it. Police are also trying to establish the role of Hashim Baba and Lawrence Bishnoi in the crime, the officer added.
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