NIA begins probe into arms smuggling racket

PATNA: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has taken over probe into the recent recovery of three AK-47 assault rifles, two under barrel grenade launchers (UBGLs) and 1,800 live cartridges of the Myanmar Army from state police. The arms were recovered from an SUV at Baisi in Purnia district .

Further investigations in the case had led to recovery of four bulletproof jackets from Arbora in Ranchi on February 19.

The seized jackets are used by Indian security forces. Also, 50 live cartridges of INSAS rifle were recovered from a flat at R K Puram in Danapur on February 8.

Police headquarters sources said an NIA team visited Purnia on Friday to take documents of the case from police.

While 600 live cartridges were recovered and three arms smugglers, including two from Ukhrul in Manipur, arrested on February 7, two UBGLs and 1,200 cartridges, concealed in the chassis of the SUV, were seized on February 10.

The arrested smugglers were identified as V R Kahornagam and Clearson Kavo, both from Ukhrul and Suraj Prasad of Pipra Basant in Gorakhpur . Based on their confessional statements, the Purnia police later arrested Mukesh Singh from Arbora and recovered bulletproof jackets from his SUV. The flat at Danapur is owned by Mukesh.

One Tirpurari Singh was also arrested from Netarhat in Ranchi and Mukesh Kumar Gupta from Dimapur in Nagaland in connection with the case.

According to a senior police officer, initial investigations revealed that the arms smugglers had links with Maoists in Bihar and Jharkhand and they were being supplied arms from foreign land.

“The smugglers also had links with a north-eastern insurgent group. The two Ukhrul-based smugglers had taken the arms consignment from a commander of the insurgent group,” he said.

“The matter is highly sensitive. It needs to be established if it’s a simple arms smuggling racket or an attempt of foreign powers to destabilise the country’s internal security,” the police officer added.