Agniveer among three held for carjacking in Mohali

An Agniveer is among three men arrested for the carjacking that took place near Delhi Public School, Chappar Chiri, two days ago, Mohali police said on Wednesday.

The accused Ishmeet Singh alias Ishu, who had been recruited in the Indian Army in 2022, his brother Prabhpreet Singh alias Prabh, and Balkaran Singh, who works with a ride-hailing service, had robbed a cab driver after posing as passengers. All three, aged between 18 and 22, are residents of Fazilka, and have studied up till Class 12.

The stolen cab, on which the accused had affixed a fake number plate, has been recovered from the accused. Police have also found a stolen motorcycle, a stolen scooter, two stolen phones, a country-made pistol of .315 bore and three live cartridges in their possession.

‘Was unhappy with his temporary job’

An investigating officer revealed that Ishu had been serving in West Bengal since his recruitment in the army in 2022 and had come home on a one-month vacation in May but not returned owing to the meagre pay. “He (Ishu) was staying away from his family, earned a meagre salary of ₹20,000 and was unsure of his future, so he didn’t want to return to the army. He seems to have made up his mind to take to crime as he had made a trip to Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, to buy a weapon, which he eventually used in the carjacking.” the officer said.

“A highly skilled shooter, it was Ishu who fired at the cab driver when the latter tried to chase the accused on foot after being pushed out of the vehicle,” the officer further said.

Booked cab using stolen mobile phone, abandoned car in Kurali

To cover their tracks, the accused, after snatching the vehicle from the cab driver, abandoned it at a secluded spot in Kurali. They had even booked the cab using a stolen mobile phone. “The accused had stolen a mobile phone from Ludhiana railway station, using which they booked the cab through a ride-hailing app and later dumped the phone. Later, after executing the carjacking, the accused parked the vehicle at a secluded place in Kurali before returning to their paying guest accommodation in Balongi,” said a cop.

The next day, they returned to the secluded spot around late evening, took the cab and drove towards Fazilka. It was then that they landed in the Mohali police net.

As per sources, the accused were nabbed with the help of human and technical intelligence.

Mohali SSP to write to the army

Mohali senior superintendent of police (SSP) Sandeep Garg will now be writing to the army to inform them of Agniveer Ishmeet Singh’s involvement in the crime.

SSP Garg further said, “It has come to the fore that many vehicles stolen from Mohali and other districts are being sold in Ferozepur or Fazilka belt. We have written to our counterparts there and also verbally conveyed the same to them to check the persons involved behind this.”

The case has been registered under Sections 307 (theft after preparation made for causing death, hurt or restraint), 308 (extortion), 125 (endangering human life), 61 (2) (criminal case) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, and the Arms Act at the Balongi police station.