Chandigarh, April 8 The Amritsar police claimed on Wednesday to have busted a cross-border illegal arms smuggling module, arresting four people, including a minor, and seizing seven sophisticated pistols and 12 cartridges.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the accused were in contact with Pakistani-based smugglers through social media platforms, and the illegal arms consignments were being sent through drones in the Attari sector near the Bhaini village and Neshta area, DGP Gaurav Yadav said.
Those arrested have been identified as Gurwinder Singh alias Ginder (32), Jobanbir Singh alias Joban (23), both residents of village Laddhewal in Amritsar; Lovepreet Singh alias Love, a resident of village Bhuse in Tarn Taran; and a 16-year-old minor.
The recovered pistols include two .30 bore PX5 Storm, two .30 bore Made in Italy, one .30 bore Made in China, one .30 bore and one 9MM Made in Austria, along with 12 live cartridges.
Police teams also impounded their motorcycle.
The DGP said that acting on the directions of their handlers, the accused would retrieve the consignments from pre-designated locations and further supply them to local contacts.
Further investigation is underway to establish forward and backward linkages and dismantle the entire smuggling network, he said.
Sharing operational details, Commissioner of Police, Amritsar, Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said that accused Gurwinder, Jobanbir and Lovepreet were apprehended and six pistols were recovered from their possession.
During the raid, their fourth associate managed to escape from the spot, he said, while adding that acting swiftly, police teams continued the search and on the following day apprehended the minor accused and recovered one pistol from his possession.
The CP said that Gurwinder and Lovepreet have previous criminal cases registered against them under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
The minor is also involved in a previous criminal case under the Arms Acts registered at Police Station Gharinda in Amritsar Rural in which three pistols were recovered from his possession.
An FIR has been registered at Chheharta police station in Amritsar under relevant provisions of the Arms Act.