By IANS,
New Delhi : A 62-year-old trader was shot dead and looted of Rs.250,000 by unidentified assailants in west Delhi, police said Wednesday. This is the third case in three consecutive days in the national capital where armed men fired at traders and looted cash from them.
Hardwari Lal Gupta was shot dead by four armed assailants when he was returning from his wholesale tobacco shop along with his son Pramod late Tuesday in Mayapuri area. His son survived the bullet injury to his arm.
Pramod told the police that he and his father were returning on their scooter around 9.35 p.m. when they were intercepted by some armed men. They first tried to snatch the bag from Hardwari Lal Gupta’s hand. When he shouted for help, they took out a gun and fired at the father-son duo.
The police said before fleeting the accused took away Hardwari Lal’s bag, in which was Rs.250,000 cash.
A woman, who witnessed the incident, told police and reporters that the armed assailants in a bid to confuse people ran on foot screaming “Pakdo usko.. pakdo usko… (catch him, catch him).”
“The robbers were carrying the bag with them. We alerted the policemen, who were close by but they didn’t even react. They said how did we know they were robbers,” she said.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (west Delhi) Sharad Aggarwal said a case of murder and robbery has been registered.
“We have launched intensive investigations to crack the case. We are looking for clues and hints,” Aggarwal said denying allegations that the police officers at the spot didn’t respond quickly enough.
The incident comes less than 24 hours after three unidentified assailants shot at two traders in the Keshavpuram area of northwest Delhi.