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Fugitive Gangster Arrested After 3 Years Abroad
17 Aug
Summary
- Akhtar Merchant, a gangster and alleged former aide of Dawood Ibrahim, was arrested.
- He was wanted in connection with a 2023 firing incident at a bakery.
- Merchant was apprehended at Delhi airport after being on the run for three years.
Akhtar Merchant, a 60-year-old gangster and alleged former associate of Dawood Ibrahim, was apprehended at Delhi airport on Monday. He had been a fugitive for approximately three years before his arrest by the Mira-Bhayandar Vasai-Virar Police Crime Branch upon his return to India from abroad.
Merchant is sought in connection with a 2023 incident involving a firing at the International Bakery in the Kashmira area. Authorities allege he conspired with another criminal, Nisar Ahmed Sheikh, to extort a businessman. When their demands were not met, they reportedly hired a gunman to fire at bakery employees. The gunman's weapon reportedly jammed during the incident.
The Kashimira Police Station filed an FIR, invoking charges under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, the Arms Act, and the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA). Merchant's arrest followed surveillance by police who received information via Interpol about his impending arrival. He is expected to face further questioning at the Mira-Bhayandar police station.
