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Bulandshahr man who killed three friends over cake smearing shot dead in ‘encounter’
Police had announced a reward of Rs 50,000 for information leading to his arrest.
So far, the Bulandshahr police have arrested five accused in the case, including three who were apprehended during earlier encounters. Express Photo
Bulandshahr police on Thursday shot dead 32-year-old gym trainer Jeetu Saini, the main accused in the murder of three men that took place on the night of April 25 inside a gym.
The killings had taken place during Saini’s birthday celebration after a brawl erupted between two groups over cake smearing that escalated intoSaini and his associates shooting dead three youngsters, all in their 20s. Saini had been absconding since then.
Police had announced a reward of Rs 50,000 for information leading to his arrest.
Superintendent of Police, Bulandshahr, Dinesh Kumar Singh said Saini was a key accused in the murder case. He said the police are continuing raids to find and arrest the remaining suspects.
So far, the police have arrested and jailed five men in the case, including three who were apprehended during earlier encounters.
Rinku Saini and Bharat Saini were arrested on Tuesday after they were injured in an exchange of fire after allegedly shooting at a police team, officers said.
Earlier, three other men were arrested, and one of them was injured in a police shootout after allegedly trying to escape.
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The police said Saini was also named in two earlier cases from 2018 and 2023, which included charges of causing death by negligence and violations under the SC/ST Act.
A resident of the Punjabiyan locality, Saini came from a well-off family that owns sweet and garment shops in the Khurja Nagar area. Widely known locally as a regular gym-goer, he also worked part-time as a trainer and was involved in property dealing. His younger brother, Ravi, is also wanted in the same case.
The early morning encounter
During the encounter, Inspector Mohammad Aslam and Head Constable Mohit Kumar sustained bullet injuries and were immediately taken to a Community Health Centre along with Saini. The accused was later referred to the district hospital, where doctors declared him dead during treatment. The police said the condition of the injured policemen is stable. Bullets also hit the bulletproof jackets of Inspector Ramphal Singh and Head Constable Kapil Nain during the exchange of fire.
According to the Bulandshahr police, teams were conducting search operations early Thursday morning to track down absconding suspects when they spotted two men on a two-wheeler on Jhanjhar Road in the Khurja police station area. When asked to stop, the suspects allegedly ignored the signal, opened fire, and tried to escape along an unpaved route.
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After a chase, police surrounded the men, who allegedly fired again after being cornered. In retaliatory firing carried out in self-defence, one of the accused was critically injured, while the other escaped under cover of darkness.
The police returned fire in self-defence, critically injuring one suspect while the other escaped in the dark.
They said a combing operation is ongoing to catch the remaining suspect.
They said that they recovered an illegal .32 bore pistol, live and used cartridges, and a two-wheeler from the encounter site.
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