CHANDIGARH: In a significant breakthrough amidst the ongoing drive to make Punjab a safe and secure state as per directions of Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, Punjab Police has solved the murder case of Gurpreet Singh Hari Nau, also known as Bhodi, with the arrest of three members of Gangster-turned-Terrorist Arshdeep Singh alias Arsh Dalla, who emerged as the mastermind, said Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav here on Friday.
The DGP accompanied by Inspector General of Police (IGP) Headquarters Dr Sukhchain Singh Gill, DIG Faridkot Range Ashwani Kapur and SSP Faridkot Dr Pragya Jain was addressing a press conference at Punjab Police Headquarters here.
Those arrested have been identified as Bilal Ahmed alias Fauji, Guramardeep Singh alias Pontu and Arshdeep Singh alias Jhandu.
As per the information, Gurpreet Singh Hari Nau alias Bhodi was shot dead on October 9, 2024 while returning back home from the village Gurudwara Sahib on his motorcycle Hero Splendor bearing registration number PB-04U-3258.
DGP Gaurav Yadav said that investigations have revealed that the murder of Gurpreet Singh was masterminded from abroad by Arsh Dalla and other persons. Different modules have been used for conducting reccee and executing the murder, with separate handlers based abroad, he said, while adding that the criminals have used cut outs to mask the conspiracy.
“The three arrested persons constituted part of the reccee module, being handled by Canada-based Karamveer Singh alias Gora. The reccee module passed on crucial information to the shooter module through their handlers and cut outs, ” he said.
The DGP said that the members of the shooter module have been identified and police teams are on manhunt to nabbing them.
During investigations, evidence has come on record indicating the role of Amritpal Singh of Waris Punjab De (WPD) in the murder conspiracy. As per some statements recorded in the investigation, the murder was carried out at the behest of Amritpal Singh.
DGP Gaurav Yadav said that the police would investigate the case on basis of evidence in a professional manner. All angles and theories of crime would be examined threadbare and investigated in accordance with law, he said, while adding that the criminal liability of all persons figuring in the investigations would be determined in accordance with the evidence available as per law.
Sharing operation details, the DGP said that acting swiftly, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) comprising police officials from the Faridkot district and State Special Operations Cell was constituted and separate teams assigned the tasks of visiting the scene of crime and collecting physical and digital evidences.
He said that the CCTV footage at the scene of crime was examined and teams were deputed to follow the forward and backward linkages of CCTVs to determine the entry and exit routes of the assailants. Meticulous investigations by the Faridkot District Police led to analysis of CCTV footage along a 125 km stretch, which helped the police in establishing the suspects’ movements and develop lead, he said.
He said that mobile tower dumps at strategic places were obtained and analyzed through big data analysis tools. At the same time human intelligence was also obtained and developed. A large number of persons were questioned. Contact was established with persons based abroad as well to glean intelligence.
During investigations, information relating to wider conspiracy to target more individuals has also been received and is being probed. The DGP reiterated that Punjab Police has been taking the matter very seriously and would get to the bottom of this conspiracy. No persons would be allowed to disturb the hard earned peace and harmony of the state, he added.
“Further investigations are ongoing and more arrests are likely to be made soon, ” said the DGP, while reaffirming the commitment of Punjab Police to conduct professional investigation and bringing all persons involved in the crime to justice.
A case FIR No. 159 dated 10-10-2024 had already been registered under sections 103 (1), 126 (2) and 3 (5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and section 25 of the Arms Act at Police Station Kotkapura.