Bhubaneswar: The Commissionerate Police on Friday busted a major interstate arms trafficking racket with the arrest of five persons.
According to sources, police intercepted a suspicious vehicle in Pokhariput area and detained five individuals, including four interstate arms traffickers from Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, who were found in possession of illegal firearms. One local associate from Salepur, Cuttack, was also apprehended. He was there to procure the firearms.
The accused have been identified as Prabin Kumar Singh (40), Abhishek Rajput (31), and Indrajit Singh (38), natives of Uttar Pradesh; Raghvendra Singh (28) from Madhya Pradesh; and Sheikh Sakil (28) from the Salipur region of Cuttack district.
Six firearms, including 4 7.65mm semi automatic pistols, 2 revolvers and 18 live ammunition, the vehicle used for transportation and five mobile phones have been seized from them.
“Prabin, the alleged mastermind from UP’s Ballia, had rented a house near Jatani Gate in Bhubaneswar two months ago to facilitate the trade of unlicensed weapons sourced from various states. Abhishek, Indrajit, and Raghvendra were key associates in the distribution network, while Sakil was apprehended while attempting to purchase firearms.,” Police Commissioner S Dev Datta Singh told the media.
The accused persons’ criminal histories, supply chains, and potential routes into Odisha are being probed. “We encourage public cooperation in reporting suspicious activities,” Singh added.
