CROSS-BORDER ARMS SMUGGLING MODULE BUSTED; HAWALA OPERATOR AMONG THREE HELD WITH 10 PISTOLS, ₹2.5L HAWALA MONEY
— ARRESTED ACCUSED WERE IN CONTACT WITH PAK-BASED HANDLERS, WERE USING SOCIAL MEDIA TO PROCURE WEAPONS: DGP GAURAV YADAV
— PAK-BASED HANDLER WAS USING DRONES TO PUSH WEAPON CONSIGNMENTS INTO INDIAN TERRITORY: CP ASR GURPREET BHULLAR
CHANDIGARH/AMRITSAR, September 22 (WISHAVWARTA):- In an intelligence-led operation amidst the ongoing drive to make Punjab a safe and secure state as per directions of Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, Amritsar Commissionerate Police has dismantled an organised arms and hawala network with the arrest of its three operatives involved in cross-border illegal weapons supply and recovered 10 Sophisticated weapons and Rs 2.5 lakh Hawala money from their possession, said Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Gaurav Yadav here on Monday.
Those arrested have been identified as Amarjeet Singh alias Bau (22), a resident of Majhi Meo in Amritsar; Manbir Singh (26), a resident of Vaan Tara Singh in Tarn Taran; and Mohammad Tofiq Khan alias Babblu (42), a resident of Gautam Nagar in Mumbai. The recovered weapons include three .30 bore PX5 pistols, three 9MM Glocks, one 9MM Bretta and three .30 bore pistols.
DGP Gaurav Yadav said that preliminary investigation has revealed the the arrested accused were in contact with Pakistan-based handlers and were social media to procure and further distribute illegal weapons with an intention to disturb peace and harmony in the state.
The DGP said that further investigation is underway to establish forward and backward linkages in this case to unearth the entire network and identify cross-border linkages.
Sharing operation details, Commissioner of Police (CP) Amritsar Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said that in an intelligence-led operation, Police teams had arrested Amarjeet alias Bau and recovered one Glock pistol from his possession. Later, on disclosure of Amarjeet, Manbir was nominated and arrested along with nine pistols, he said, while adding that both Amarjeet and Manbir had a common Pakistan-based handler, who pushed weapon consignments into Indian territory using drones.
The CP said that further investigation has revealed that the money from this smuggling trade was routed through hawala to Pakistan by a Mumbai-based individual Mohammad Tofiq Khan, who was using rented premises in different cities of the Punjab for network operations. The latter was arrested along with ₹2.5 lakh hawala money, he added.
In this regard, a case FIR No. 257 dated 17.09.2025 has been registered under sections 25(6), 25(7) and 25(8) of the Arms Act at Police Station Gate Hakima in Amritsar.
