Bollywood actor Salman Khan with father Salim Khan.
Credit: PTI
Two men -- Vicky Gupta, 24, and Sagar Kumar Palak, 21 -- who opened fire outside Bollywood actor Salman Khan's residence on Sunday were offered Rs 4 lakh 'supari' to carry out the shooting, police sources revealed.
Gupta and Palak were arrested from Gujarat on Monday while another suspect was detained from Haryana on Wednesday, NDTV reported.
The men are allegedly linked to gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, who has time and again expressed anger towards Salman Khan for 1998 case of black buck poaching. The Bishnoi community considers the blackbuck sacred.
Police sources have revealed that the accused, Gupta and Palak, were offered Rs 4 lakh 'supari' to carry out the firing and an advance of Rs 1 lakh was provided.
Mumbai Crime Branch officials have stated that their intention was not to kill Khan but to scare him.
Speaking to news agency ANI, an official said, "The accused conducted a 'recce' of Salman Khan's farmhouse in Panvel. They intended to just scare him, not murder him. The statements of both families have been recorded in Bihar. Around 7 people have been called from Haryana and other states for questioning, which is ongoing."
Proceedings to issue a Lookout Circular (LOC) against Lawrence Bishnoi's brother, Anmol Bishnoi, have been initiated by the Mumbai Police, the publication reported.
Anmol was reportedly in touch with the suspects through various calling and messaging application, inclusive of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP). Moreover, he provided directives to the man detained from Haryana.
The suspects purchased multiple SIM cards at different locations, NDTV reported.
On Tuesday, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde visited Khan's residence and assured him protection.
"There is no gang (war) in Mumbai. The Underworld has no (place) in Mumbai. This is Maharashtra, this is Mumbai. We will finish this (Lawrence) Bishnoi (gang) so that no one dares to do such a thing," Shinde said referring to firing on Khan's residence.
Last year National Investigation Agency (NIA) said that Khan topped the list of Lawrence Bishnoi's 10 main elimination targets for the former's alleged link to 1998 black buck hunting case, the publication reported.