Chandigarh, August 30: Director General of Police (DGP), Gaurav Yadav, announced on Thursday that Punjab Police, along with central agencies, has successfully disrupted an arms smuggling module supported by Pakistan by arresting two individuals from Tarn Taran.
According to the DGP, “the operation resulted in the recovery of four sophisticated Glock-19 pistols, including one with the imprint ‘Made for NATO Army,’ along with four magazines and seven cartridges, in addition to Rs 4.8 lakh hawala money.” Police teams also seized a Maruti Swift vehicle that the accused were driving.
Harpreet Singh and Lovepreet Singh have been named as the arrested pair. With cases related to the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS) lodged against them, both have a criminal past.
DGP Yadav claimed that Harpreet Singh was associated with a transnational smuggler who utilized drones to transport consignments of weapons and drugs from Pakistan.
He continued, “More research is being done to determine backward and forward links in this instance.”
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Tarn Taran, Gaurav Toora provided additional facts, telling the media that the Maruti Swift car, which was being driven recklessly, was signaled to stop while the police were conducting a vehicle check of suspicious vehicles near Sheron in Taran Taran. When the drivers attempted to escape, the car crashed into the checkpoint barricade.
According to the SSP, after searching the vehicle, the two people inside were apprehended and guns and hawala money were found.
He added that initial inquiries had shown that Harpreet had made some contacts while imprisoned in Faridkot Jail, who had connected him to the drug smuggler working from Pakistan.
The SSP stated that more arrests are anticipated in this case and that the investigation has also shown that Harpreet had transferred additional weapon consignments to criminal groups.