The Jammu & Kashmir Police on Tuesday claimed to have arrested four militants and seven over ground workers (OGWs) in connection with the killing of three youths last week in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district.

A police officer said the militants and the OGWs were arrested during separate raids carried by a joint team of special operations group of the state police and troops of army’s 46 and 52 Rashtriya Rifles battalions from Drangbal, old town Baramulla, and neighbouring Sopore town.

“During the investigations, it has been revealed that the militants were found to be involved in the killing of three youths at Khanpora, Baramulla on April 30,” he said and identified the arrested militants as Nasir Ahmad Mochi, Bilal Ahmad Najar, Aijaz Ahmad Gojri and Nadeem Kalia aka Ustad.

The officer identified six of the seven OGWs: Owais Rashid Bhat, Ozair Ahmad Bhat, Ameen Bhat, Muzamil Bashir, Sharif Bashir Bhat and Nayeem Abdulla.

“A pistol was recovered from the possession of the arrested militants and an Alto (JK-01-J-0010) was seized,” he said.

On April 30, three youths were shot dead in old town Baramulla. Police had blamed Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) militants for the killings. Baramulla SSP Imtiyaz Hussain had said that the attack was carried out by two local militants and a Pakistani militant.