Spurt in smuggling of firearms in Pune

There is a sudden spurt of smuggling of illegal firearms in the district. In the last three months, the Pune rural police have seized 14 country-made pistols and 41 live cartridges, while the city police have confiscated 28 such firearms and arrested 41 suspects.

The police officials admitted that the trend is disturbing. “Usually in a month, we seize a couple of firearms. But the seizure in the last three months clearly indicates that the smuggling of firearms is showing a rising trend,’’ said a Pune rural police official.

Pune rural police sources claimed that one of the main reasons for smuggling of firearms is the demand by local goons and anti-socials involved in land grabbing. The firearms are used to terrorise gullible landowners.

The goons in the city are clandestinely procuring them for self-protection. In most of the cases, where goons have arrested for buying firearms, they have confessed to the police that they are buying the firearms for self-protection.

“The police are now concentrating on chain snatching incidents. Hence, these firearms smugglers are taking advantage and sneaking into the city to sell firearms to goons,’’ police sources added.

In Pune rural, dealings of these illegal firearms take place in the fringe areas of the district so that the seller can leave the district as soon as the firearms are sold.

“In 10 of the 14 cases, the seizures took place in remote areas in Mulshi area and the rest in Wadgaon Maval and Lonavla and Alandi,’’ police officials said.

Recently, the local crime branch of the Pune rural police laid a trap after being tipped off and arrested a youth on September 19 for possessing a country-made revolver worth Rs26,000 along with two live cartridges.

The suspect, Kiran Devkule (28), hails from Gandhinagar, in Nashik district, and had come to Lonavla to sell it. Senior inspector Nitinkumar Gokave admitted that there is a greater need to pay attention to this trend.

“Since civic polls are approaching, the demand by anti-socials for firearms would increase for different purposes,’’ he said.