New Delhi, Sep 25 A 42-year-old alleged member of the Patna-based Pinku Chaudhary gang, who was declared a proclaimed offender by the Delhi Police in a 2013 Arms Act case, has been apprehended from Ranchi, officials said on Friday.
Accused Chhotu alias Prince, who was on the run for nearly eight years, was apprehended from the capital of Jharkhand following a brief chase by a police team, they added.
Chhotu was declared a proclaimed offender by a Delhi court in November 2018 after he allegedly failed to appear during proceedings in the case, police said.
He was arrested by the Special Cell in 2013 along with his associate Ravi Singh, and four pistols and 20 live cartridges were seized from their possession. An FIR under the Arms Act was subsequently registered at the Special Cell police station.
Chhotu is allegedly involved in more than 15 serious criminal cases in Bihar, including for murder, attempt to murder, dacoity, robbery and offences under the Arms Act.
Police said Chhotu is a member of the Pinku Chaudhary gang, which is involved in a violent rivalry with the Ajay Verma gang in Patna. The accused and his associates had allegedly carried out retaliatory attacks against members of the rival gang with the aim of establishing their dominance in criminal circles.
Acting on specific information, police laid a trap in Ranchi on Thursday.
On noticing the police team, Chhotu allegedly attempted to flee but was chased and apprehended after a brief pursuit, the officials said.
During interrogation, police learnt that Chhotu, a native of Patna, had studied up to Class 10 before dropping out of school. His criminal activities first came to light when he was arrested in a robbery and Arms Act case in 2007, during which he came in contact with Singh, who later became his associate.
According to police, Chhotu and his associates were involved in several violent crimes in Bihar between 2010 and 2019.
In one of the cases, he and his associates allegedly shot dead Guddu Gidda, a suspected shooter associated with the Ajay Verma gang, in broad daylight on October 25, 2013.
Police said Chhotu and Singh later shifted to Delhi, where they were arrested by the Special Cell in the Arms Act case.
Singh was killed in 2018, allegedly by members of the rival gang, following which Chhotu continued to change his locations and movements to evade arrest and trial, police said.
(PTI News)
