A former cyclist, a man who used to work as a driver, a teacher, and a Class XII dropout: These four men, brought together by their fascination with the criminal underworld, allegedly hatched a plan to target jewellery stores and demand extortion money.
Last month, they allegedly opened fire outside one such shop in Northwest Delhi’s Mukherjee Nagar and demanded protection money of Rs 1 crore from its owner. All four were arrested last week by the Delhi Police Special Cell.
Police suspect a gang angle behind the crime — the note demanding money, which the accused left the crime scene, purportedly mentioned names of gangsters Neeraj Bawana, Naveen Bali, Davinder Bambiha and Bhola.
The incident took place on August 24. Shots were fired outside Sehgal Jewellers, with a demand for protection money of Rs 1 crore. Police said CCTV footage of the showroom captured a man wearing a helmet. In another CCTV clip, the suspect and an associate were seen fleeing the spot on a white Apache motorcycle.
“Right after the incident, the shop owner also received a threatening phone call demanding the money,” the police said.
A case under the relevant sections was lodged and multiple teams were formed to crack the case; it was later transferred to the Special Cell given the involvement of gangster networks.
On August 28, the team zeroed in on the suspects and made their first arrests. One of the accused, Nikki Bidhuri, a resident of UP’s Bulandshahr, allegedly accompanied the shooter to the spot on the bike. The second, Hemant from Mathura, allegedly arranged the SIM card under a fake ID to make the extortion call.
“During questioning, the men said they, along with other gang members, conspired to fire gunshots in front of a jewellery shop to demand protection money,” said DCP (Special Cell) Manoj C.
The team then arrested the main shooter, Aakash alias Katil, a resident of Hapur, and co-accused Harender alias KD, a resident of Greater Noida. The two had gone underground, deactivating their mobile phones and social media accounts, following the arrests of Nikki and Hemant.
The DCP said, “The accused men meticulously planned the extortion. They first conducted a reconnaissance of prominent jewellery showrooms in Delhi-NCR. Once they picked their target, they stole a motorcycle and acquired a SIM card on a fake ID. On the day of the incident, Aakash and Nikki arrived on the stolen Apache to execute their plan. Nikki stood with the motorcycle in front of the showroom, while Aakash fired the shots. He then left behind a slip demanding protection money.”
Police said Aakash is a Class XII dropout. After leaving school, he got involved in petty crimes and was arrested in a robbery case in Delhi in 2021. “During his custody in Mandoli jail, he came in touch with several infamous gangsters. Following his release on bail, he followed these gangsters on social media and continued to be drawn into their criminal world. He, along with the other accused, devised a plan to extort money from affluent businessmen through extortion calls,” said the DCP.
Police said Nikki used to work as a driver at a school in Greater Noida. Two months ago, he quit his job and came in contact with Harender and Hemant. Nikki was facing financial hardships owing to losses in gambling so he joined hands with the men.
Harender, a resident of Greater Noida, holds an MA in Political Science and is a teacher. “Despite having a stable job, he harboured a deep fascination for the criminal underworld and this led to him being involved in the present case,” said police.
Hemant dropped out of his BSc course in the third year. Police said he claims to have participated in several cycling competitions. He fell into bad company and came in contact with infamous gangsters like Jaggu Bhagwanpuriya, Sampat Nehra and Vijay Mann, said police.
