Accused was arrested and 25 illegal semi-automatic pistols were recovered from his bag (Representational)
The Special Cell of the Delhi Police on Monday arrested a suspected member of an interstate illegal arms supply racket and recovered 25 semi-automatic pistols from him, officials said.
The accused Ravi Morya (25), a resident of Dhar district in Madhya Pradesh, was arrested from Rohini, they said.
The accused told the police that although the manufacturing cost of a pistol comes to just Rs 7,500, he supplied these firearms in bulk at Rs 15,000 each.
The pistols supplied by him in Delhi eventually go into the hands of criminals here and adjoining states at Rs 25,000 to Rs 35,000 each, he told police.
A probe was initiated after police learnt through technical surveillance that illegal weapons were being pumped into Delhi from Khargaon, Dhar and Burhanpur in Madhya Pradesh, a police officer said.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Sanjeev Kumar Yadav said a trap was laid in Rohini where the accused had come to deliver a huge consignment of illegal arms to his contact.
He was arrested and 25 illegal semi-automatic pistols were recovered from his bag, he said.
A mobile handset and a SIM card used in illegal arms supply activities have also been recovered from him, he said.
During interrogation, the accused told police that to make easy money, he was lured into this racket by a person named Jagat, who is a resident of his village and has been working as a carrier of illegal firearms for past four years.
He received illegal firearms from Jagat and on his directions, further supplied them to various people in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Delhi, he said.
He disclosed that for many years, Jagat and his family members have been engaged in manufacturing of illegal arms in their village and supplied the weapons to various parts of country, including Delhi, UP, Haryana and MP.
Pistols manufactured by Jagat are of such good quality that it is difficult to distinguish between them and pistols of government ordinance depots, the DCP said.
Police said the accused has been previously arrested in a similar case under Arms act registered in Hisar district of Haryana.
He came out of jail on bail due to the COVID-19 pandemic and again started supplying illegal firearms on the directions of Jagat.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)