The Crime Branch’s Unit Nine officers have arrested a 27-year-old man named Sonu Likhanlal Bhandari, who allegedly brought deadly weapons from Nagpur intending to sell them in Mumbai. Originally from Nagpur, Bhandari was found in possession of two country-made pistols and three rounds of ammunition.
Due to a rise in cases of weapons being smuggled from other states into Mumbai, the Mumbai Police launched a special operation to crack down on traffickers. During this campaign, Senior Police Inspector Daya Nayak received information indicating that firearms had been brought from Nagpur for delivery in the Santacruz area. Acting on this tip-off, a team led by DCP Vishal Thakur and officers API Utkarsh Waze, Mahendra Patil, Bhosale, Mhalskar, Shinde, Gavte, and Chougule conducted surveillance in plain clothes near Tilak Road, Valia Chambers in Santacruz.
On Tuesday, Bhandari arrived at the location, and his suspicious movements prompted the team to detain him. During a search, police recovered two country-made pistols and three live cartridges from him.
Bhandari, a resident of Hingna Road, MIDC Panchsheel Nagar in Nagpur, had brought the weapons intending to sell them in Mumbai, but the police intercepted him before he could complete the sale. He is now in police custody, facing charges of illegal possession of firearms, with further questioning underway, according to Senior Police Inspector Daya Nayak.
