Jalandhar, March 19: The Counter Intelligence Wing along with Jalandhar Rural Police on Tuesday arrested Cobra gang’s head Iqbal Singh Afridi with illegal arms and ammunition in Maqsudan.
The Police also seized a .32 bore revolver, 17 live cartridges from a specially-designed compartment near gearbox of Toyota Corolla car in which Afridi was travelling.
AIG (Counter Intelligence) Harkamalpreet Singh Khakh said Afridi is a notorious gangster of the Majha region and was involved in more than 20 cases, including murder, attempt to murder, gangwar, extortion. Afridi had also allegedly stripped a woman in Fatehabad township, besides a gangwar case in Goindwal Sahib area of Tarn Taran district in which four persons were killed. He was declared proclaimed offender (PO) in many cases and wanted by Mohali and Tarn Taran police.
Khakh said counter intelligence got a tip-off that absconding gangster Iqbal Singh Afridi is heading towards Jalandhar in his car to meet his relatives.
Acting swiftly on the information, AIG Khakh said he immediately shared this information with Jalandhar (rural) SSP Navjot Singh Mahal and formed a joint team of counter intelligence officials and personnel from Maqsudan police station to arrest him.
The team, during checking, stopped a car on suspicion and arrested the gangster along with illegal weapon and ammunition in Maqsudan.
The AIG said Afridi was a college dropout who later formed his armed gang named “Cobra Gang”. The gang was involved in several cases of extortion, murder and attempt to murder.
Khakh said Afridi was arrested in 2016 by Mohali Police. He came out on bail in January 2017 and continued with his criminal activities.
In August 2018, in Goindwal Sahib, Afridi was involved in a gangwar in which three gangsters and a rickshaw puller who was passing by were killed.
Khakh added that Afridi had a very lavish lifestyle. He was driving Toyota Corolla car and had good income sources.
He has partnership in three liquor venders and also has fishing contracts in the Harike area. Besides, Afridi was into cricket betting and had links in the betting world. Khakh said all these angles will also be explored during his further interrogation.
A case has been registered against him under Arms Act for carrying illegal weapons and police are working on information he has divulged during his preliminary interrogation. He said the arrested gangster will be produced before the Magistrate and the police will seek his remand to get the information and arrest the others linked to his Cobra gang.
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