In a major breakthrough, a joint team of the Uttar Pradesh Police’s Special Task Force (STF) and the Delhi Police gunned down a notorious sharpshooter of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang in an encounter in the Hapur Kotwali area, officials confirmed on Thursday (May 29). The deceased has been identified as Naveen Kumar, a wanted criminal involved in several serious cases, including murder, and booked under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).
According to ADGP (STF) Amitabh Yash, the encounter took place on Wednesday night, when a joint team comprising STF’s Noida unit and Delhi Police’s Special Cell exchanged fire with a group of criminals in Hapur Kotwali. During the gunfight, Kumar sustained severe injuries and was rushed to a local hospital, where he was declared dead.
Naveen Kumar, a resident of Loni in Ghaziabad district, was known to be an active sharpshooter affiliated with the Lawrence Bishnoi gang and worked closely with another notorious gangster, Hashim Baba. Police records reveal that 20 criminal cases were registered against Kumar across Delhi and Uttar Pradesh. These include charges of murder, attempt to murder, kidnapping, robbery, and other serious crimes under the MCOCA.
UP STF said, "An accused identified as Naveen Kumar, a resident of Loni, Ghaziabad, was gravely injured in an encounter with the joint team of the Noida unit of UP STF and the Special Cell of Delhi in the Thana Kotwali area, Hapur, last night. The accused was sent to the hospital for treatment, where he was declared dead. Naveen was wanted in a murder and MCOCA (Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act) case of Thana Farsh Bazar, Delhi. The wanted accused Naveen was an active member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang and is a sharpshooter. Twenty cases, including murder, attempt to murder, kidnapping, robbery and MCOCA, were registered against him in Delhi and UP, and he had been sentenced by the court in two cases in Delhi."
Additional SP, Noida, Raj Kumar Mishra said, " Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) Noida unit and Delhi Police's Special Cell yesterday got information that the absconding accused of a murder case of Farsh Bazar is visiting Hapur. When police intercepted the criminal, he started firing at our team. In retaliatory fire by the Police, the criminal was injured, and later In retaliatory fire by the Police, the criminal was injured, and later succumbed to his injuries at the hospital. He had more than 20 cases registered against him. He was an active member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang. In this operation, two police personnel, including a constable, sustained injuries."
Kumar’s criminal activities date back to 2008, when he was first booked under the Arms Act at Seemapuri police station in Delhi. In 2009, he allegedly committed a murder in the Sahibabad police station area, and by 2010, he was booked under the Gangster Act in Uttar Pradesh. Authorities have termed this a significant success in their ongoing crackdown on organised crime and gang networks operating across northern India.
