3 held,pistols,cartridges seized

Acting on a tip-off,the Hadapsar police team laid a trap near Renuka Mata temple in Mundhwa area. The suspects came to the spot on a motorcycle. Constable Suraj Shedge and Pradeep Shitole nabbed the suspects after a long chase.

“The police recovered two pistols from Soni,an illegal firearms dealer. One revolver was recovered from Khairnar,who was a supervisor at a private security agency located on Tilak Road. Narale was also working as a security guard for the same firm but was not on duty for the last one month and was moving with Khairnar and Soni,” said Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone IV) Jalinder Supekar.

“Soni was earlier booked in Mumbai,Thane and Pune under the Arms Act. He was released from jail on bail two months ago,after which he went to his native place in Jhansi and brought two pistols and cartridges for selling in Pune.

He had earlier sold one pistol to Khairnar,which we have seized,said Supekar. “Soni was looking for a house in Pune,but was currently staying with Khairnar and Narale. During interrogation,Soni said he brought the pistols from Uttar Pradesh for Rs 4,000 each. The pistols are country made but of very superior quality. Investigation is being carried out to find out whether they have sold more arms in Pune,” he said. Supekar further said he would send a show-cause notice to the private security firm where the suspects were working. “It is a licenced security agency and we may also cancel their licence,” he said.

Meanwhile,the police also seized four cell phones and a motorcycle from the suspects. Senior police inspector Pandharinath Mandhare and inspector Vishwambhar Golde are heading the investigation team.