In a major breakthrough, the Mohali police arrested the ringleader of a gang involved in several robberies on interstate highways following a dramatic exchange of gunfire near Lehli village in Lalru on Sunday.

The accused, identified as Satpreet Singh alias Satti, 34, sustained a bullet injury in his right leg during a struggle before he was nabbed. His accomplice Sabi managed to flee the scene amid the melee, leaving behind a black Bajaj Platina motorcycle.

A .32 caliber pistol along with five live cartridges were recovered from Satpreet, who was taken to the local civil hospital by the police.

“Satpreet was riding behind Sabi on the motorcycle. When they were being chased by the police, Satpreet opened fire on the police team. In the middle of the chase, Sabi drove the motorcycle towards the jungle area of ​​Lehli village. But when Satpreet was hit by a bullet, Sabi abandoned him and the two-wheeler and fled the spot,” said a police officer.

Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav said Satpreet was a history maker, wanted for several theft and robbery cases in Punjab and Haryana.

Probing two recent robberies led police to the master

“His gang primarily targets vehicles stalled on the Ambala-Dera Bassi highway. Preliminary investigations revealed that most recently Satpreet along with his three associates carried out two late night robberies on the highway in Lalru area on November 3 and 10, making off with cash, mobile phones and gold ornaments at gunpoint. The DGP said, adding that further investigations are underway to arrest his associates.

Sharing more details, Mohali Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Deepak Pareek said during the investigation of these robbery incidents, credible information about the involvement of Satpreet’s gang was received which matched the facts and evidence was collected.

“Acting swiftly, a team, led by Dera Bassi DSP Bikramjit Singh Brar, worked on human and technical inputs and tracked Satpreet’s movement near Lehli village. When police teams were chasing his motorcycle on Sunday, he fired three shots at the police team, which hit the official police vehicle. In retaliation, the police also fired at the accused, as a result of which Satpreet sustained a bullet injury on his right leg,” the SSP said.

Senior police officials, including SP (Rural) Manpreet Singh, reached the spot and claimed that the police had strong leads and would arrest Sabi, who fled the encounter site, soon.

A case under Sections 109 (attempt to murder), 132 (offence of assault or use of criminal force against a public servant) and 221 (obstructing a public servant in the discharge of public functions) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and relevant sections of the Arms Act was registered at the Lalru police station.

A six-member gang was formed in prison

According to investigators, Satpreet, a resident of Dandrala village in Dera Bassi, leads a six-member gang of highway robbers that he formed in Ambala jail.

His accomplices are from Dera Bassi, Lehli and Ambala and thus the gang targeted vehicles on National Highway-21 at Zirakpur, Dera Bassi and Ambala.

“He met his gang members in Ambala jail. On November 10, they had robbed at gunpoint a married couple who work for a private company. The gang targeted multiple victims, many of whom did not even report the robberies but approached the police after Satpreet’s arrest. We will nab other members of the gang soon,” said a police officer.

Just last month, the Lalru police filed two cases of robbery and evasion against Satpreet, who was earlier also booked by the Dera Bassi police in an attempt to murder. Addicted to drugs, he has been admitted to a rehab center in Ambala in the past.