A 33-year-old man was apprehended in the outer Delhi area of Holambi Kalan with ten homemade hand grenades. The accused, Dilip alias Billi, is from the Madhya Pradesh district of Chhatarpur and lived with his family in the Holambi Kalan area, news agency PTI reported quoting police statements on Tuesday. Police said Dilip was apprehended after receiving a tip about the hand grenades lying in the forest area of Metro Vihar, Phase-II, in Holambi Kalan on Sunday.
Officials said efforts are being made to locate a co-accused in the case, identified as Kashiram, and that Dilip worked at a printer shop in his locality in Delhi.
According to Deputy Commissioner of Police (Outer North) Ravi Kumar Singh, Dilip revealed during interrogation that he was given around ten country-made hand grenades by his friend Kashiram around 50 days ago to keep them safe, PTI reported. The hand grenades were placed in a plastic bucket, covered with grass, and stored in the mud near a drain, he said.
Dilip was promised money in exchange for keeping these grenades safe, and he has no idea why these explosive shells are being stored, according to police.
According to DCP Singh, the accused Dilip was supposed to deliver the consignment to someone after receiving payment from Kashiram. These explosives, according to police, have a 20-foot radius of impact.
Dilip used to switch locations for hiding these grenades to avoid being caught, according to police, who added that extensive combing operations were carried out with the assistance of a bomb disposal squad to ensure no more such substances were hidden in other areas.
According to the DCP, intelligence agencies also interrogated the accused to determine the source and purpose of the grenades' storage. "We arrested the accused after filing a case under Section 286 of the Indian Penal Code and the relevant sections of the Explosive Substances Act," he was quoted as saying by PTI.
"The case is being investigated, and the search for another accused Kashiram is underway. We have sent teams to Chhatarpur in Madhya Pradesh to apprehend him," he said. Dilip was previously involved in a theft case, while his accomplice Kashiram was previously involved in a robbery case, according to police.