The police have arrested six alleged shooters and operatives linked to the Rashid Cable Wala and Hashim Baba gang and seized a cache of illegal firearms and ammunition, officials said on Monday.
The arrests were made under “Operation Gang Bust 2.0”, an ongoing crackdown on organised criminal syndicates in the national capital.
Police officials said the accused were planning attacks on rival gang members and were involved in extortion and betting rackets across East and Northeast Delhi.
The six men — Faiz Qureshi, 26, Maaz, 24, Nawajish, 32, Affak, 24, Imran alias Teli, 39, and Arshad alias Chota, 25 — are residents of northeast Delhi, including Kabir Nagar, Babarpur and Brahmpuri. All have previous criminal records involving murder, attempted murder, extortion and Arms Act offences, police said.
The Crime Branch recovered 10 illegal firearms and 81 live cartridges, including nine pistols of .30 and .32 bore and a .312 bore rifle, commonly known as a “doga”. A car allegedly used by the gang was also seized. Officials said two Italy-made Beretta pistols were among the recovered weapons.
Police said the breakthrough came after receiving intelligence on May 6 that gang operatives had gathered at F-Bar & Lounge on Pusa Road in Karol Bagh. Four suspects were arrested outside the club at around 4.05 a.m., with four pistols and 32 cartridges recovered from their vehicle.
Further investigation led to two more arrests and additional seizures. Police alleged the gang collected extortion money from clubs and businesses and used the encrypted Signal app to communicate with fugitive gangster Rashid Cable Wala, believed to be operating from Dubai after fleeing India in 2022 using a fake passport.
