This gang leader was a man with multiple fortes to his credit

From kidnap and rape to house burglary and theft to extortion, robbery to abetting, the prime accused who was on run here has a total of 14 cases registered against him in Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu States.

Disclosing this to media at a press conference here on Tuesday, Police Commissioner Sunil Agarwal gave the names of the accused as follows, who hail from Trissur district in Kerala State. They are – Mustafa alias Ashraf (40), the prime accused and hotel employee, resident of Javakkad blangat village, Khalid alias Khali (28), Nishad alias Nishyad (25) and Sameer alias Sami (25), from Puner Kulam Panchayat. The name of another accomplice who managed to escape has been kept a secret, in view of further investigation, the commissioner added.

Acting on a tip off, the investigation team led by their Inspector K N Yeshwanth Kumar under the banner of ‘Operation Midnight’ nabbed the gang when they were planning to strike a businessman’s house in Nanjangud. 

The gang was making preparations at an abandoned house in Old Kesare, when they fell in to the police net. Gold, valuables worth Rs 2.25 lakh besides a debit and PAN card, weapons of types and a packet of chilli powder have been seized from them.
According to preliminary investigation, Mustafa had five cases registered against him in Nanjangud limits alone, besides four in Palakkad, three in Trissur, one in each of Madurai and Kodagu.

In Nanjangud, he is accused of provoking a woman named Muniyamma to kill self on July 28, 2011, besides decamping with gold valuables worth Rs 2.5 lakh from the house of Salma on Ramamandira Road and two wine shops and a petty shop in the temple town.
Barring a case in Trissur where he was convicted and also served imprisonment for six months, he was either on run or went underground at the time of trial in the other cases.

A brainy, he had hoodwinked jail authorities and had escaped from Javakkad sub-jail in Trissur district in 2006. He had also run away from the clutches of police when in custody in2008. He was being taken to Viyur Central Jail through Madurai in a train, after producing him ina court in Ramanathapuram, when he jumped off the bogie. He had robbed Dinesh a hotel employee in Madikeri town of his purse, debit and PAN card.

The commissioner said Mustafa entered into the world of crime with the kidnap and rape of a minor in Trissur in the year 2005. His tryst with the dark world of crime continued with chain snatching, house burglary and thefts, robbery among others. It was for the first time, he thought of making it big and hatched a dacoity plan only to be caught off guard.

The police team consisted of sub- inspectors A Guruprasad and S Prashanth among others.

Cops to act on sale of weapons

It seems the police have finally taken notice of sale of sharp weapons in open in public places. The police commissioner has received a petition in this regard online and has plans to curb the sale of weapons, which may easily be the pick of those with criminal intentions.