The Uttar Pradesh Police arrested the mastermind behind the abduction of actor Mushtaq Khan and comedian Sunil Pal, officials confirmed on Monday. Lavi Pal, also known as Rahul Saini, was apprehended following an encounter on the night of December 22-23, in which he sustained a leg injury. The police had been tracking him since October when he orchestrated the kidnapping of Khan under the pretext of inviting him to an event in Meerut.
On October 15, posing as Saini, Lavi Pal invited Khan to a supposed event scheduled for November 20, offering an advance payment of Rs 25,000 and a flight ticket. After Khan arrived in Delhi, he was picked up and driven to a house in Bijnor, where he was held captive. However, Khan managed to escape on November 21 while the kidnappers were asleep, seeking shelter at a nearby mosque before returning home.
Upon further investigation, police discovered that the gang had used a similar approach to abduct Sunil Pal in Meerut. During Khan’s captivity, his mobile phone was used for transactions totaling Rs 2.5 lakhs. Six members of the gang were arrested earlier, but Lavi Pal and three others remained at large.
Police received a tip-off regarding Lavi Pal and his cousin Shubham’s whereabouts, leading to an operation on the night of December 22-23. When officers attempted to arrest them at Jain Farm on Mandawar Road, they came under fire. A bullet struck the bulletproof vest of SHO Uday Pratap. In the ensuing gunfight, Lavi Pal was injured, while Shubham managed to flee.
Pal was arrested and taken to the district hospital for treatment. Authorities recovered a country-made pistol, two cartridges, and Rs 35,050 extorted during Khan’s abduction from Pal’s possession. Additional SP Sanjeev Bajpai stated that strict action would be taken against Pal under the Gangster Act, and assets acquired through criminal activity would be seized.
Both Bijnor and Meerut police had offered a Rs 25,000 reward for Lavi Pal’s arrest. Authorities are now interrogating him to uncover more details about his gang’s operations and any other potential targets within the film industry.
(With PTI Inputs)