Ahmedabad: Four persons have been arrested and 18 illegal firearms were recovered from their possession by the Ahmedabad crime branch here.Deputy commissioner of police, Crime Branch, Deepan Bhadran said that four accused, three from Jasdan in Saurashtra and one from Juhapura in Ahmedabad were intercepted near Jashodanagar cross roads.

Police said, a Breeza car GJ03KP5876 was stopped by police near express highway in Jashodanagar area. Those inside the car were Vaseem Iqbal Kathiri(34), Imran Mahebubkhan Pathan(35), Afzal Gafar Mandaliya(29) and Sikandar Liyakatali Saiyed(28). They were residents of Jasdan, Juhapura and Junagadh.

Police found 8 pistols (Rs. 2 lakh), 10 country made guns (Rs. 50,000), 8 magazines of country made pistols (Rs. 4,000), 37 live cartriges (Rs. 3700), five mobile phones (Rs. 41,000) and Breeza car(Rs. 7 lakh) in their possession.

When questioned, Vaseem was found to be involved in 2014 in two firing and attempt of murder crimes in Bhavnagar. He was held in 2013 for rioting in Jasdan. Sikandar alias Bapu Liyakat Saiyed was arrested in Junagadh taluka in murder case in 2015, rioting caes in 2019 foreign liquor case in Jetpur in 2012. Imran Pathan was held in 2013 in Sarkhej police station of Ahmedabad for attempt of murder.

They told police they had brought weapons from their friends Bablu Sardar, resident of Bevdar village of district Dhar in Marhya Pradesh and Surendra Sardar. They said they brought these weapons to kill Umedulla Sheikh and Vali Meman of Bhavnagar over old dispute related to murder of Samad Arab.

When further questioned, it was revealed that Vaseem Kathiri was in Gondal sub jail for four months in murder case of Kanabhai Kathi. Juhapura’s Imran Pathan was also in same jail under PASA, so as Sikandar alias Liyakat Saiyed of Junagadh. When out of jail, they remained in contact with one another. Imran Pathan would do court work for Vaseem.

DeshGujarat