Ludhiana: The rural police of this district have arrested six men and booked 12, including a US-based gangster, in connection with a petrol bomb attack and shooting outside a property dealer’s home, believed to be linked to a longstanding land dispute.The incident occurred at Baddowal village on the night of July 9, when four masked men in a stolen car threw a petrol bomb at the house of Yadwinder Singh and fired multiple rounds before fleeing. The attackers recorded the assault on their mobile phones, police have claimed. The case has since unfolded into a wider conspiracy involving gang connections that span state borders and overseas.Among those booked is Kunwarveer Deo, a gangster from Bahadurke village in Ludhiana originally and now based in the US. Police say he was contacted by Dildar Singh, a local man involved in a property dispute with the victim, and is alleged to have orchestrated the attack. Deo allegedly hired four shooters from Patiala — Riyaz Gupta, Sahil Malhotra, Sahil Rajput, and Harshpreet Singh Bhullar ‘Harsh’ — to carry out the assault. The shooters, travelling in the stolen car, executed the bombing and firing, then abandoned the vehicle at a petrol-refuelling station on the Ferozpur-Moga road.Deputy superintendent of police (Dakha) Varinder Singh Khosa said two more accused, Dhruv Thakur and Jazzy of Ludhiana, had followed in a Scorpio and picked up the shooters after the attack. The group then sought shelter with acquaintances in Moga and Ferozepur districts, including Gurinder Brar, Baljinder Singh, and Amrik Singh.Police arrested Bhullar on July 18, followed by Thakur and Ekjot Singh on July 19, and three more — Gurinder Singh, Baljinder Singh, and Amrik Singh — on July 20. Recovered items include the stolen car and Scorpio, glass jars used for the molotovs, and petrol stored in a plastic bottle. A firearm used in the attack is yet to be recovered.Cops claimed to have named 12 people in the case, so far. Investigations are in progress, and authorities expect to make further arrests soon. While the motive appears rooted in a property dispute, police have not ruled out a contract element and are investigating links to organised crime.MSID:: 122856918 413 |
