Botched robbery: Shot by his own, left for dead: How murder cover-up led to arrest of 9 of gang
The nine members of the ‘lungi’ gang were held after two encounters that took place within a few hours of each other
: What began as a planned robbery ended in betrayal and a botched attempt to stage an accidental murder as suicide, in Mohanlaganj near here. This was also the reason for the eventual capture of nine of their gang in two police encounters.
On the night of March 24, a band of robbers, who usually raided their targeted locations in ‘lungi’ and with mustard oil rubbed on their bodies, snuck into Bheduwa in the Mohanlalganj area. In the kerfuffle, one of them inadvertently shot their leader, one Sushil Chauhan of Sitapur.
Severely injured, Sushil was abandoned by the bushes while the rest of the gang fled, but not before leaving behind a trail of blood that alarmed locals.
Some vague sense of loyalty, however, brought them back to look for their friend the next day, but Sushil had collapsed to his injuries and excessive bleeding by then, police told media persons on Tuesday.
The body was then abandoned by the tracks nearby and found by the police later. Forensic analysis gave the police his identity. The nine members of the ‘lungi’ gang after two encounters that took place within a few hours of each other, they added.
Deputy commissioner of police (South) Nipun Agarwal on Tuesday said: “The fellow gang members tried to hide the bullet injury on Sushil’s limb by vigorously scratching the wound with a sharp object. The body was covered with straws. To show his death as a suicide, the body was taken to the Gopal Kheda railway track and discarded it there.
“They tried to make sure that the body couldn’t be recognised by making it run over by two trains. The deceased’s motorcycle and mobile phone were abandoned in a wheat field. When we found the body, it was identified to be that of Sushil Chauhan of Sitapur, who was booked in at least 10 cases, including one under the Gangsters’ Act,” added the DCP.
According to assistant commissioner of police Rajnish Verma, police connected the dots with the help of the post-mortem report. CCTV footage revealed that it was a dacoity attempt that went awry. He added.
As per police, the accused were part of an interstate gang that was currently active in Lucknow. One of the nine members is Satish Soni, a jeweller in Jankipuram. “Ram Chandra alias Chotu and Kamlesh were first nabbed after an encounter late Monday night. In the wee hours of Tuesday, other gang members Jhabbu, Babu Ram, Shibu and Abhilash were nabbed after another police encounter. Police also arrested the jeweller and recovered valuables worth ₹4.5 lakh from him and other valuables from their possession,” said the DCP. “One of their accomplices, Buchai, is at large and another died after suffering a bullet wound,” the DCP added.
