The accused, identified as Anand alias Sagar, was arrested by the police from near Kashmere Gate bus stand on Monday following a tip-off. Haryana Police had declared a cash reward of Rs 25,000 on information leading to his arrest. A semi- automatic pistol and half-a-dozen cartridges were recovered from him.
"He was wanted for several sensational crimes in many states. He has been arrested and a case under the Arms Act has been registered... During preliminary interrogation, he has disclosed that he, along with his aides Akshay, Anil and Sukhdev, was running an extortion racket in and around the areas of Karnal, Haryana," said DCP (Special Cell) Sanjeev Kumar Yadav.
In January 2015, when the accused was at a hideout in Gujarat, one of his old associates, Afroz, contacted him for extorting money from a textile businessman of Kutch, Gujarat.
Anand hatched a conspiracy with Afroz, Ali and Rafiq for murdering the businessman after receiving the extortion money. An extortion call was made to the businessman, Sachin. After negotiations, the amount was settled as Rs 60 lakh.
Irked by police's involvement in the case, he kidnapped Sachin's business partner Ashish as revenge. The gangster and his associates stayed in Uttarakhand forests for a few days with the abducted victim till they realised the ransom amount. The victim was then abandoned in Muzaffarnagar.
