Lavi Pal, the mastermind of a gang which targeted actors through fake event invitations for Uttar Pradesh was arrested in a police encounter at Bijnor (U.P.) on December 22. He was shot in the leg on the night of December 22, but his close aide and cousin, Shubham, managed to flee.
According to Bijnor SP Abhishek Jha, they received a tip-off that Lavi planned to meet Shubham in a mango orchard on Sunday night. As the police cordoned off the area, the suspects tried to flee and opened fire. When the police returned fire, Lavi was injured in the leg. He was admitted to the district hospital. The police seized Rs. 35,050 in cash, a country-made pistol and two bullets from Lavi. Three used cartridges were also found at the scene of the encounter.
Investigations revealed the involvement of the gang in high-profile abductions of actors, including Mushtaq Khan and Sunil Pal.
On October 15, Lavi Pal, posing as Rahul Saini, invited Mushtaq Khan to an event in Meerut, offering Rs. 25,000 as advance and a flight ticket. On November 20, Mushtaq Khan was picked up from Delhi airport, taken to Bijnor and confined in a house there. Money was forcibly transferred online to the gang’s account from two bank accounts of Mushtaq Khan.
