On Sunday, the Delhi Police Crime Branch unveiled a massive illegal arms smuggling racket. By dismantling this weapon supplier network associated with the Neeraj Bawana gang, the branch managed to arrest four suspects. From the scene, they seized a vast array of illegal weapons, including 15 semi-automatic pistols, 150 live bullets, and eight magazines.
DCP (Crime Branch) Harsh Indora revealed the main accused as Mohammed Shahjid, aged 42. His accomplices are identified as Vishal Rana (28), Aniket (32), and Saurabh Dhingra (38). On August 11, the Crime Branch set a trap at the Netaji Subhash Place District Center's parking and apprehended Shahjid, discovering a cache of weapons inside his car.
During this operation, the team confiscated 10 pistols, 118 live bullets, and eight magazines. Shahjid's interrogation disclosed that he sourced weapons from Meerut and Mawana in Uttar Pradesh, supplying the Neeraj Bawana gang and other criminals. He admitted to supplying over 100 weapons across Delhi and NCR.
The DCP further disclosed that each weapon was bought for 35,000 to 40,000 rupees and sold for 50,000 to 60,000 rupees. Following Shahjid's revelations, police teams intensified raids. On August 17, they arrested Inderpuri resident Vishal Rana (28), recovering pistols and bullets from him.
Vishal Rana had prior involvement in two illegal weapon smuggling cases. On September 9, they caught Rajouri Garden resident Aniket (32) carrying a semi-automatic pistol and two live bullets. The third receiver, Kirti Nagar resident Saurabh Dhingra (38), was apprehended on September 13, with three semi-automatic pistols and 27 live bullets discovered in his possession.
Source: aajtak
Saurabh Dhingra already faced three serious criminal charges, including attempted murder. With these latest confiscations, the total stands at 15 pistols and 150 bullets. According to police records, Shahjid was first arrested in 2012 in Delhi for separate robbery and loot cases and was further booked under the Arms Act and attempted murder in 2022.
In 2023, the special cell of the police arrested him with a large consignment of weapons, but after release, he resumed smuggling. Shahjid's history with past cases and his return highlights the organized nature of this network. Shahjid and his network had structured a systematic chain for distributing pistols and bullets.
