Gorakhpur NEET aspirant murder: Prime accused dies during treatment

Gorakhpur (UP), Sep 19 (PTI) The prime accused involved in the murder of 20-year-old NEET aspirant Deepak Gupta here, died during treatment at a hospital, police said.

Azhar Hussain (32) was arrested following an encounter with the police on Wednesday.

According to police, he was an alleged cattle smuggler and hailed from Gopalganj district in Bihar. Hussain was severely injured after being caught and beaten by villagers before being handed over to the police.

On Tuesday night, his pickup truck got stuck during a chase, allowing locals to corner him. He was thrashed by the crowd and later admitted to BRD Medical College's surgery department with severe head and shoulder injuries.

During the treatnent, the accused remained under tight police security. A magistrate recorded his statement on Wednesday, where he revealed the names of his associates involved in the network, police said.

However, his condition deteriorated suddenly and he was declared dead at 10.37 am on Friday, they added.

Police said eight smugglers were identified in the case. While Rahim was nabbed during an encounter in Kushinagar, Chhotu, Raju, and Ramlal are already in custody.

Teams of the Special Task Force (STF) and local police are continuing raids in Bihar and western UP to trace the absconding accused.

Superintendent of Police (North) Jitendra Kumar said, "Azhar was a key accused in the case. His statement has given crucial leads about the network. The remaining accused will be arrested soon, and strict action will follow." PTI COR CDN OZ OZ