Kanpur businessman Jai Bajpai, allegedly the financier of gangster Vikas Dubey, was arrested late on the night of Sunday, 19 July, for providing ammunition that was used in the Bikru village encounter that left eight policemen dead on 3 July.
Prashant Shukla aka Dablu, brother-in-law of slain gangster Bauan Dubey, has also been arrested. His mobile location shows that he was present in Bikru village on the night of the ambush.
According to SSP Kanpur Dinesh Kumar Prabhu, Jai Bajpai and Dablu have been booked under the Arms Act and criminal conspiracy under Section 120 B.
The SSP said that during his house search more than 20 cartridges were found missing and Jai Bajpai could not explain the missing ammunition.
Sources said that the Special Task Force (STF) investigating the carnage, has also found that Jai Bajpai arranged for vehicles to help the accused persons get away after committing the crime.
Three luxury cars were later found abandoned in Kanpur.
Jai Bajpai had allegedly been picked up by police a day after the 3 July incident and had been subjected to intense interrogation.
He was allowed to return home on Sunday evening and later picked up again in the night.
Bajpai, an affluent businessman, is said to have managed Vikas Dubey’s finances. According to reports, transactions worth Rs 75 crore have taken place between the two in the past one year through six bank accounts.
The two were reportedly investing money in betting games too.
Jai Bajpai, sources added, worked as a conduit between Vikas Dubey and several IAS, IPS officers, ministers, and legislators.
"We are passing on all this information to Income Tax and ED for further probe," said a senior police official.
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