Vikas Dubey ordered firing at police team in Bikru village: Arrested aide

Following his arrest on Tuesday, Vikas Dubey’s alleged aide Shashikant alias Sonu Pandey denied killing DSP Devendra Mishra and said the slain gangster had ordered the firing at the police team that raided his house on the night intervening July 2 and 3.

Pandey made the claims to a TV news channel while being taken away by the police after his arrest.

On being asked who killed DSP Mishra, he told the new channel that he did not kill him. "They (policemen) were killed very brutally (badi berahami se maara gayaa)," Pandey told the channel in a very feeble voice.

When asked why did he flee from his house and why did he get his head tonsured, he said, "My mother told me to run away (Maa ne bhagaa diyaa thaa). I got my head tonsured because my father (Prem Kumar Pandey) is no more."

Prem Kumar Pandey was killed in the encounter with the police in Bikru village.

Two of Vikas Dubey's alleged accomplices, Prem Prakash Pandey and Atul Dubey, were killed by the police in a shootout in Kanpur.

When asked how the firing was started from the rooftop of Dubey’s house, Shashikant said, "It was immediately ordered (on the raid by the police team). Vikas Dubey gave the orders."

In response to a question by the reporter, Pandey said, "He (Dubey) did not spare anyone."

On being asked if “he (Dubey) also used to target girls”, Pandey replied in positive.

Pandey was arrested and two rifles of the Uttar Pradesh police, looted during the Kanpur ambush earlier this month, were also recovered, police said on Tuesday.

With this, all weapons looted during the ambush have been recovered, they said.

Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) Prashant Kumar said Dubey's aide Shashikant alias Sonu Pandey was carrying a reward of Rs 50,000 on his arrest.

"Shashikant Pandey was an accused in the killing of the eight policemen (in the Kanpur ambush). He was arrested from Chaubeypur around 2.50 am," the police officer told reporters in Kanpur.

"During interrogation, he admitted to his involvement in the encounter at Bikru village in Kanpur dehat. It was revealed that the looted AK-47 of police was hidden in Dubey's house while the INSAS rifle was at Shashikant's house," the ADG said.