In brief

Cop dead in accident

One constable died while two others sustained injuries when their jeep rammed a tree in Nigohan on Saturday. The deceased is Tularam,a resident of Kanpur. The injured constables,Rajesh Prasad and Babulal,have been admitted to the Trauma Centre for treatment.

Woman kills self

A woman allegedly committed suicide by setting herself afire at her Talkatora area residence on Saturday. The deceased is Shalini Shukla (30). No suicide note was found on Shalini,who reportedly took the extreme step following a dispute with her husband,Anand Shukla. “Shalini’s parents have filed a complaint against her husband and his family,” said Talkatora police circle In-charge Sudhir Pal Dhama.

Man flees jail,3 officials suspended

Three warders of the Lucknow Model Jail were suspended on Saturday after an inmate escaped from jail custody yesterday. Warders Prem Shankar,Ganga Ram and Laloo Ram Pal were escorting Bharat Ram alias Bharat Lal (50) to the Indian Institute of Sugarcane Research,from where he fled.

STF nabs Chota Rajan’s aide

LUCKNOW: The Uttar Pradesh STF arrested an alleged aide of Chota Rajan’s gang from the Gomti Nagar area of Lucknow on Saturday. Peter Francis Kotinaho (49),a native of Karnataka,was arrested with his associate Manoj Kumar Gupta alias Sonu,a resident of Etawah. The police recovered a pistol,a revolver and a passport from them. Wanted in criminal cases lodged in Mumbai and Karnataka,Peter was staying in Farukkabad district.

320 kg sandalwood recovered,two held

KANPUR: Two persons were arrested and nearly 320 kg of ‘smuggled’ sandalwood were recovered from them in Kanpur on Saturday. The duo,Fida Hussain and Vimlesh Kumar,have been booked under Section 26 of the Indian Forest Act. Worth an estimated Rs 30 lakh,the consignment was allegedly being smuggled from Baharaich to Kannauj district via Kanpur.
On a tip off,the Kakadeo police stopped the truck (UP74 B 8191) near Rawatpur crossing in the early hours of Saturday. Swaroop Nagar Circle Officer Balwant Singh Choudhary said: “Around 2 am,we traced the the truck and recovered the sandalwood,which was hidden in 17 jute sacks containing brooms.”
A resident of Tirwa area of Kanpur,Hussain told police that he had been running the racket for the past few years and that he purchased sandalwood from different districts and sold it to people in Kannauj.
Kakadeo Station Officer Hemant Kumar said: “Kannauj is renowned for perfume manufacturing industries and possibilities are high that the smuggled sandalwood was used for making perfume.”