NOIDA: A sharpshooter of dreaded gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, around 42-year-old, who carried a Rs 1 lakh reward, was gunned down on Wednesday during an encounter with Uttar Pradesh (UP) Police’s special task force (STF) unit in Meerut’s Mundali area.
The accused, Jitendra alias Jitu, from Sivan village in Haryana’s Jhajjar district, was surrounded by police after an exchange of gunfire early Wednesday morning, according to Amitabh Yash, additional director general (ADG) of the UP STF.
“Jitendra sustained bullet injuries when the STF team retaliated. His associates escaped taking advantage of the darkness, and despite being rushed to hospital, Jitendra succumbed to his injuries,” he said.
The STF seized several weapons from Jitendra, including a carbine with 22 9mm bullets, a .32 bore pistol containing six bullets, and an unregistered motorcycle.
Police said that a total of 10 criminal cases including murder, robbery, rioting, and armed assault under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Arms Act were registered against him across Delhi, Haryana and West-UP districts.
Additional Superintendent of Police (Noida STF), Raj Kumar Mishra, told MillenniumPost that Jitendra had received a life sentence for a double homicide in Jhajjar in 2016 but was released on parole in 2023.
“In Haryana’s Jhajjar, he killed a village Sarpanch and his father in village Asauda. In 2018, he was convicted for the murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. He was released on parole in 2023 but absconded instead of returning,” said Mishra.
“After escaping, he took a contract killing assignment and committed another murder by shooting multiple rounds at a man in Tilamod area Ghaziabad.
He was subsequently wanted for the murder, leading to a Rs 1 lakh reward for his capture. During his incarceration in Haryana, he established connections with the Lawrence Bishnoi gang and began operating for them,” Mishra informed.
In another crackdown against criminals by Noida STF unit, three inter-state arms smugglers were arrested from Mathura recovering 11 firearms and over three dozen ammunitions. Police identified the arrested accused as Veerpal Yadav (49), Lakhan Singh and Sachin Kumar, natives of Mathura.
“They would supply weapons on demand to criminals and earn profit. A total of 8 criminal cases are registered against the gang. We are investigating the case and will interrogate them to reveal more about their nexus,” Mishra said.