PATNA: One of the sharpshooters in the Atiq Ahmad gang, Mohammad Arman, is currently lodged in a Bihar jail in connection with a shootout case in the district. Uttar Pradesh police visited Gaya Central Jail on Saturday to take him on transit remand in the Umesh Pal murder case.
A native of Gaya district, Arman is allegedly involved in the killing of advocate Umesh Pal in Prayagraj on February 24, 2023. He had fled Uttar Pradesh following the killing.
"We have been hunting for Arman since 2023. Recently, it came to our knowledge that he is lodged in Gaya Central Jail in Bihar. We will take him to Uttar Pradesh for further interrogation," a police personnel said.
The police officer, who wished to remain unidentified, said Arman's name had surfaced in the killing of Umesh and his two associates. CCTV footage showed Arman driving the motorcycle while Guddu Muslim was riding pillion.
The daylight murder of the three people had raised questions over policing in Prayagraj. Arman and Guddu stated to be close associates of Uttar Pradesh gangster Atiq Ahmad and had escaped after the crime.
Atiq and his brothers were accused in the BSP MLA Raju Pal murder case of 2005. Umesh was a witness in the case.
Meanwhile, Arman's parents, Mohammad Shamim and Asgari Khatoon, submitted a petition in the Gaya district court expressing apprehension that their son could be killed in a fake encounter by the Uttar Pradesh Police. They said Arman had been living in Prayagraj, where he worked for a private firm.
His parents pleaded his innocence and denied his involvement in any criminal activities. "He is falsely being implicated in a criminal case by UP Police," they told the media outside the court campus.
The UP police team was awaiting Arman's transit remand at the time of filing this report.