FOUR LINKED TO CROSS-BORDER ARMS SMUGGLING NETWORK HELD WITH 10 SOPHISTICATED PISTOLS
— ARRESTED ACCUSED WERE RECEIVING ILLEGAL WEAPON CONSIGNMENTS VIA CROSS-BORDER ROUTES FOR FURTHER SUPPLY TO CRIMINAL ELEMENTS: DGP GAURAV YADAV
— ACCUSED ARE RESIDENTS OF VILLAGES LOCATED CLOSE TO THE INTERNATIONAL BORDER: CP ASR GURPREET BHULLAR
CHANDIGARH/AMRITSAR, June 27, (WISHAVWARTA);- In a major breakthrough 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 busted a cross-border illegal arms smuggling network with the arrest of four individuals and recovered 10 sophisticated pistols from their possession, said Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Gaurav Yadav here on Saturday.
Those arrested have been identified as Ravi Singh (33) and Sharanbir Singh alias Sunny (31), both residents of village Mahawa in Amritsar; Manpreet Singh alias Mannu (21), a resident of village Nihala Kilcha in Ferozepur and Pippal Singh (22), a resident of village Fatehwala Hithar in Ferozepur. The recovered weapons include three .30 bore (Made in China), one 9MM Glock (Made in Austria), one 9MM and five .30 bore along with nine live cartridges. Police teams have also impounded their two motorcycles.
DGP Gaurav Yadav said that preliminary investigation has revealed that the arrested accused were acting on the directions of foreign-based smuggler and were receiving illegal weapon consignments through cross-border routes for further supply to criminal elements.
The DGP said that further investigation is underway to establish backward and forward linkages in this case to identify other associates involved in the illegal arms supply chain.
Sharing operational details, Commissioner of Police (CP) Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said that acting on reliable intel-inputs, police teams arrested Ravi Singh and Sharanbir alias Sunny and recovered three pistols from their possession. During sustained interrogation of the arrested accused, police teams recovered two more pistols on their disclosure, taking forward the investigation into the larger illegal arms network.
The CP said that pursuing further leads and intensifying investigation regarding the foreign-based smuggler, police teams arrested Manpreet alias Mannu and Pippal Singh, and recovered three pistols from their possession. Further interrogation of accused Manpreet Mannu and Pippal Singh led to recovery of two additional pistols, exposing their active role in the illegal arms supply chain, he added.
He said that verification of criminal antecedents has revealed that arrested accused Sharanbir alias Sunny and Ravi Singh are already involved in a previously registered criminal case under attempt to murder and Arms Act provisions.
CP Gurpreet Bhullar said that investigation has further revealed that all four accused are residents of villages located close to the International Border, indicating their proximity-based access and involvement in cross-border illegal arms smuggling activities.
In this regard, two separate cases— FIR No. 140 dated 21.06.2026 under sections 25 and 25(6, 7, 8) of the Arms Act at Police Station Chheharta and FIR No. 198 dated 22.06.2026 under section 25(8) of the Arms Act at Police Station Maqboolpura in Amritsar— have been registered.
