ROURKELA: Three armed miscreants were arrested following a brief encounter along the Odisha-Jharkhand border near Rourkela after they opened fire on a hotel owner and looted cash from him in the wee-hours of Friday.
Sources said two of the three miscreants sustained gunshot injuries in counter police while they were trying to escape.
Rourkela SP Nitesh Wadhwani said seven to eight miscreants armed with firearms and knives raided Dugru Dhaba at Sarubahal under Bisra police limits at about 11 pm on Thursday. They fired at the hotel owner and looted about Rs 20,000 and three mobile phones. He was injured as one bullet hit his leg, Wadhwani said.
Following the incident, the SP said, Bisra police led by inspector M Kumbhar swung into action and tracked four of the miscreants escaping on a motorbike.
When the police intercepted them, they opened fire on the officers. Acting swiftly, the police returned fire, during which two miscreants were shot in the legs and subsequently apprehended, according to the Superintendent of Police.
While one managed to escape with the motorbike, another was nabbed after a brief chase. A firearm was seized from the spot and some empty cases along with live bullets were recovered.
The SP said three more have been detained and other miscreants involved in the crime are being tracked. He said these criminal elements residing in bordering pockets of Jharkhand operate in both sides of Odisha and Jharkhand.
Police said the injured miscreants, Baneswar Singh (20) and Sibanath Singh (26) have been admitted to Rourkela Government Hospital (RGH) for treatment. The third criminal has been identified as Bishambhar Singh (25). Dhaba owner Dugru Xalxo has also been admitted to the hospital for a bullet injury in his leg. IG of Police Himanshu Lal said efforts are underway to nab others involved in the incident.
The IGP warned the criminals and antisocial elements of Sundargarh and those coming from Jharkhand of stringent police action if they indulge in anti-social activities in Odisha side of the border.
A case under sections 310(2) and 311 of BNS besides sections 25 and 27 Arms Act, has been registered.
Earlier, a hardcore criminal of Anandpur in adjacent Jharkhand and his crime partner were arrested by the Rourkela police following a brief encounter near Akshayshila waterfall under Bisra block police limits. A SUV with Jharkhand registration number a 9MM pistol, a magazine and two mobile phones were seized.