Quit Army job, International kick-boxer... Who is Deepak? Mastermind behind Delhi luxury car showroom firing

The Delhi police on Thursday arrested the mastermind behind the firing incident at a luxury car showroom in the national capital on September 27. Police also arrested his accomplice after a brief encounter in outer Delhi.

According to police, a special team of Delhi Crime Branch arrested the mastermind, 26-year-old Deepak from Rohtak in Haryana. A special team of the crime branch was formed to nab the accused following the incident and they conducted round-the-clock surveillance for the accused, Delhi police said.

Based on specific information about his presence, police laid a trap for Deepak in a town in Rohtak, Haryana. “Police successfully nabbed Deepak after a short scuffle as the person showed his martial art manoeuvre to escape from police party, but quick and vigilant staff overpowered him,” Amit Goel, Deputy Police Commissioner, Delhi Crime Branch said.

According to police, Deepak, along with three other associates fired at a luxury car showroom in Naraina, Delhi on September 27 demanding Rs 5 crore as protection money. The gang allegedly carried out the shootout on the instructions of gangster Himanshu Bhau. A slip reading "Himanshu bhau since 2020" was recovered from the spot.

 Goel said, “Deepak and his associates demanded extortion money from the owner of the car showroom but the same was not paid, hence he was tasked to recce and open fire in the showroom.” According to police, Deepak was a trained kick-boxing player and has won gold in international junior championships. Deepak is an accredited Wushu coach. He quit an Army job which Deepak got under sports quota and is running a kick-boxing coaching centre in Rohtak.

Delhi police also arrested his accomplice, Arman Khan, after a brief exchange of fire in outer Delhi. Khan suffered a bullet injury in his leg and is undergoing treatment at a hospital in Delhi. 

“In the early hours of Thursday, Khan was sighted on a motorcycle and was signalled to stop, but he fired two shots towards the police party. Police returned fire and shot a fleeing Khan in the leg,” Amit Kaushik, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) told PTI.

Kaushik said a police personnel was also hit by a bullet, however, he was wearing a bulletproof jacket. Delhi police have seized a semi-automatic pistol from Khan, PTI reported.