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Twenty-eight-year-old Firoz alias Fauzi, who was wanted for the murder of a constable, was gunned down on Tuesday morning in what police said was an encounter on Pushta Road in Sonia Vihar, Northeast Delhi.
Police said Fauzi was intercepted near Pushta Road after they received a tip off about him visiting an associate, and was killed in an encounter. Fauzi’s family, however, contested the claim and pointed to a news report in a local newspaper about Fauzi’s arrest on August 17.
According to an August 18 report in Navodaya Times, “Firoz alias Fauzi, who had over a dozen cases registered against him was arrested August 17”.
Speaking to Newsline, Fauzi’s father said his son and daughter-in-law had been missing from their residence in Loni since July 20.
“They were hiding from police. We came to know of my son’s arrest from a report in Navodaya Times. It clearly mentioned that my son Fauzi has been arrested by police for the murder of a constable. We thought that they had arrested our daughter-in-law too. But when we saw the news this morning, it said that our son had been killed in an encounter. How can he be killed in an encounter today when he was arrested on August 17?” Irshad Ali, Fauzi’s father, said.
“After we heard the news about the encounter, we went straight to Sonia Vihar police station and asked them to hand over the bodies of Fauzi and our daughter-in-law. But we were were told that my daughter-in-law was with the special cell and would be released soon. The staff there said Fauzi’s body would be handed over only after the formalities were completed,” Irshad Ali said.
Police claimed that Firoz alias Fauzi, who had been evading arrest since July 14 after shooting a police constable in Jaffrabad, was intercepted in Sonia Vihar around 5 am on Tuesday and asked to surrender. Fauzi, however, tried to flee. When he saw that he was surrounded by police personnel, he whipped out a pistol and opened fire, police said.
“A shot fired by Fauzi hit inspector Shiv Kumar on his bullet proof jacket and another hit the Gypsy. The police party fired back in self-defence. Fauzi sustained bullet injuries and was moved to GTB hospital, where he was declared dead on arrival. He had over 17 cases of murder, attempt to murder, robbery and under Arms Act registered against him,” DCP, Special Cell, Sanjeev Kumar Yadav said.
Police said they had identified Fauzi and his associate, Firoz alias Billori, from CCTV footage while investigating the murder of constable Shivraj Tomar.
“The footage was watched again to gain knowledge about the person who had shot the constable. Help was sought from sources to identify the duo and Billori was arrested on August 7. A team was constituted to nab Fauzi,” a police officer said.
Police said they had received a tip-off that Fauzi would go to Pushta Road to meet someone. A police team was deployed to apprehend him, police said.
Fauzi shot constable at point blank range: Police
On July 14, constable Shivraj Tomar, posted with the Jaffrabad police station in Northeast Delhi, was on his way to the police station, when he reportedly saw two persons on a motorcycle without a helmet. The motorcycle also did not have a registration plate.
According to the press release issued by police, Tomar identified the duo as “notorious criminals”. Police said as Tomar was about to pin down one of the bike riders, Fauzi allegedly pulled out a pistol and shot Tomar in his chest at point blank range.
The FIR registered at Shahadra police station based on the statement of a head constable states that around 11.15 am, he was patrolling the area, when a passerby informed him about two men fighting near Jyoti Colony.
“One of them was pinned to the ground. The man who was on top, took out a pistol fired at the other person… The accused fled from the spot… I took the injured to the hospital, but he succumbed to injuries. Later I saw his name from a Delhi Police identity card,” the head constable’s stated.
What Navodaya Times says:
“Firoz alias Fauzi, who was at large after he shot dead a police constable on July 14 in Jyoti Nagar, was arrested on August 17. According to sources, Fauzi had over a dozen criminal cases registered against him. A resident of Loni in Ghaziabad, he had earlier been arrested by the Delhi Police.”
Mentioning the background of the case, the paper reports that Fauzi had gone to meet one of his associates on a motorcycle on July 14, when he was identified by constable Shivraj Tomar, who was on the lookout for him. Tomar reportedly held onto Fauzi’s shirt in a bid to nab him. Fauzi whipped out a pistol and opened fire, killing Tomar.
The paper reported that Fauzi then took off his shirt, which Tomar was still holding, and fled. He then reportedly called his associate Firoz alias Billori asking him to get him a shirt. Both fled to Meerut. There, police had also announced a reward of Rs 1 lakh on Fauzi. Delhi’s Crime Branch, Special Staff and Special Cell had been given the responsibility to arrest Fauzi, the paper reported.