UP: Man wanted for businessman's murder killed in encounter in Ghazipur

Ghazipur (UP), Jun 3 (PTI): An accused carrying a reward of Rs 1 lakh for the murder of a local businessman was killed in a police encounter here late on Wednesday evening, officials sai.

UP: Man wanted for businessman's murder killed in encounter in Ghazipur

Ghazipur (UP), Jun 3 (PTI): An accused carrying a reward of Rs 1 lakh for the murder of a local businessman was killed in a police encounter here late on Wednesday evening, officials said.

The deceased accused was identified as Kamlesh Chaudhary alias Kamlesh Bind, who was wanted in connection with the May 29 murder of Vinit Rai, a businessman in Uttar Pradesh's Ghazipur district.

Kamlesh was among the four named accused in the case.

Superintendent of Police Dr Iraj Raja told reporters that since the murder, police teams had been conducting raids in search of the accused.

Acting on a tip-off that Kamlesh was hiding near Pavhari Baba Ashram in Kurtha village, police and SWAT personnel surrounded the locality on Wednesday night.

"When the teams signalled a motorcycle rider without a number plate to stop, he opened fire on them from a distance. Police retaliated, and the suspect was injured in the encounter," SP Raja said.

Police later identified the injured man as Kamlesh and rushed him to a hospital, where doctors declared him dead.

During the encounter, the SWAT team in-charge and sub-inspector Rohit Mishra suffered a bullet injury to his shoulder and is undergoing treatment, police said.

An illegal .32 bore pistol, a live cartridge and a motorcycle were recovered from the spot, officials said.

Police said Kamlesh had seven criminal cases registered against him, including murder, attempt to murder, kidnapping, assault, criminal intimidation and offences under the Arms Act. His criminal record dated back to 2017.

A day earlier, police had announced rewards on the four named accused in the murder case. The main accused, Shankar Pandey and Kamlesh, carried rewards of Rs 1 lakh each, while their accomplices Sonu Yadav and Monu Tripathi carried rewards of Rs 50,000 each.

Shankar, Sonu and Monu remain at large.

According to investigators, businessman Vinit Rai was shot dead on May 29 night allegedly after failing to meet a Rs 1 crore ransom demand.

Rai, who managed a hotel in Ghazipur city, was attacked outside the hotel premises while leaving for home after dinner. Four assailants allegedly arrived on two motorcycles and first approached the hotel gate on the pretext of purchasing beer before opening fire on him.

According to police and eyewitness accounts, Rai was shot multiple times while attempting to escape and later succumbed to his injuries at a medical college hospital.

Further investigation is underway, police added. PTI CDN RUK RUK

(This story is published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. No editing has been done in the headline or the body by ABP Live.)