Bihar shopkeeper fought back robbers in Muzaffarpur, shot dead: Police

PATNA: Five men on two motorcycles shot dead a grocer inside his shop in Muzaffarpur district’s Bakhri locality late on Wednesday evening after he resisted an attempt to loot him. Police said Raja Babu’s shop was the second that was robbed by the five unidentified men in the locality on Wednesday.

Moments before the five men stopped their motorcycles outside Raja Babu’s shop, the five robbed another shopkeeper, Sandeep Kumar but could get only ₹10,000 cash from him.

Raja Babu’s employee, Neelkamal, said two men barged into their shop at about 9.45pm, just as they were preparing to pull down the shutter. They told Raja Babu to hand over the day’s earnings but the 28-year-old resisted the robbery attempt. Neelkamal said one of the two men fired at his employer, picked up the cash and valuables that he had kept in his bag to take home, and fled.

Raja Babu, who had sustained multiple gunshot injuries, was rushed to a nearby hospital by other shopkeepers and residents. He didn’t survive. Doctors said he died due to excessive bleeding.

On Thursday, traders in the area did not open their shops and commercial establishments to protest Raja Babu’s murder and marched on the streets with his body to protest the murder which reflected poorly on the law and order situation.

North Bihar chamber of commerce general secretary Sajjan Sharma demanded the immediate arrest of the suspects and said the markets in the area will remain shut till the culprits are arrested.

Muzaffarpur senior superintendent of police Rakesh Kumar said the police teams were analysing the CCTV footage from cameras at the shops for clues about the suspects.

“Multiple teams have been formed to nab the miscreants and police are investigating the involvement of both local and outside criminals,” he said.