Lucknow: UP STFin a joint operation with the Goa crime branch arrested a suspected shooter wanted in connection with a firing incident at a hotel in Goa.The accused, Babu (35), a resident of Bahraich district, was arrested from Risia Mod Park area in Bahraich on Saturday evening shortly before he was trying to escape to Nepal.The arrest was made in connection with FIR registered at Porvorim police station in Bardez district of Goa, in connection with the shooting of Shri Nivara Nayak at Hotel Neo Majestic on Aug 28.Goa Crime Branch had identified Babu as one of the shooters and sought assistance from the UP STF to trace and arrest him.Deputy SP, STF, Pramesh Shukla said the teams received information that Babu was preparing to cross into Nepal.STF and Goa Crime Branch teams mounted a joint operation and intercepted him.The accused has been handed over to the Goa Police for further legal proceedings.“During questioning, Babu told investigators that he came into contact with a person named Anna while visiting a jail in connection with his brother, who had been lodged in Taloja jail in 2014 in a case related to allegedly taking a girl away,” said DSP Shukla.Anna was released in 2024 and he reportedly started a juice and vada-pav shop in Goa.Babu said his brother subsequently sent him to work with Anna. He went to Goa in Jan 2026 and began working at the shop.Babu told investigators that Anna had criminal antecedents and arranged for three pistols. He allegedly handed one of the weapons to Babu and told him that they had to shoot a “big person” and that he would be paid Rs 5 lakh for carrying out the assignment.Babu admitted that driven by the promised payment he accompanied Anna and participated in the firing at Shri Nivara Nayak in the hotel.The accused claimed that several rounds were fired during the attack before the group fled the location.Babu said that after the incident, he handed the pistol back to Anna and travelled to Mumbai, where he stayed with his brother for a few days and subsequently returned to Bahraich.
