Illegal arms trail: Pune gangs sourced weapons from MP village, say police

Pune, Nov 23 (PTI) Pune police on Sunday said gangs operating in the city sourced weapons from Umarti village in Madhya Pradesh, where they busted a major inter-state illegal arms manufacturing and trafficking racket.

The police launched a crackdown in Umarti village in Barwani district, located around 500 km from Pune, detaining 36 persons and seizing a huge cache of weapons. In the operation, carried out jointly with the MP police, 50 furnaces, where weapons were being manufactured illegally, were destroyed.

Speaking to reporters, Pune Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar said, "Fifteen days ago, we had decided to destroy places where pistols were manufactured and factories from where weapons were supplied to Pune and other parts of the state. We had information that the people of Umarti also supported the illegal manufacturing of arms, and there was a threat of retaliation from them. But we were fully prepared." The accused will be charged under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) in various cases, he said.

"Investigations have revealed that gangs operating in Pune procured weapons from Umarti, which is infamous for illegal arms manufacturing. It was also found that the pistol used to gun down gangster Sharad Mohol was sourced from the village. Several gangs from Pune have links to the village and action will be taken against them as well," Kumar said.

He further said that police personnel involved in the operation will receive a reward of Rs 10,000 for their performance in the action.

A team of 105 police personnel from Pune, led by Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Somay Munde, took part in the operation.

Over the past three weeks, 21 pistols were seized in Pune. During the interrogation of the accused held in the city, it came to light that the weapons brought to Pune were sourced from Madhya Pradesh. After that, this operation was planned and carried out, Joint Commissioner of Police Ranjan Kumar Sharma had earlier said.

"This is a supply chain of weapons. Search is on for those who sent these weapons to Pune. Many more individuals are involved in this racket, and inquiry is still underway," he had stated. PTI COR NSK NP GK ARU