Gurugram/Chandigarh: A notorious criminal, Rakesh alias Kala Khairmpuria, facing several criminal cases, has been arrested after being deported from Thailand, an official of the Special Task Force of the Haryana Police said on Saturday.
In a press conference in Gurugram, STF Chief DIG Simardeep Singh said that the gangster was running the Bhau gang from Thailand and was the mastermind behind the June 24 incident of firing outside the Mahindra car dealership showroom in Hisar.
"The investigation revealed that Rakesh arranged the arms and coordinated with the shooters in planning the attack and has claimed responsibility for orchestrating the attack at the car dealership through his Instagram account," Singh said.
"The investigations linked him directly to the planning and execution of a violent incident at a car dealership in Hisar on June 24, underscoring his continued operational influence despite residing abroad", he said.
Rakesh had been evading law enforcement agencies since he jumped his parole in 2020 and continued to orchestrate criminal activities initially from within India and later from countries like UAE, Armenia and Thailand, police said.
Sharing his criminal background police said he has been charged with offences which include dacoity, robbery, murder, and illegal possession of firearms and has been named in 14 FIRs.
Rakesh was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for a murder that he committed in 2015 in the area of Bhadra police station in Hanumangarh, Rajasthan.
He was sentenced in 2018, and after serving the sentence till 2020, he was released on parole. He never reported back, Singh said. During this period, he evaded arrest and further expanded his criminal operations in Haryana and neighbouring states, police said.
Rakesh allegedly killed another person in Darauli village in Fatehabad district in 2021. He was declared a proclaimed offender in 2023, Singh said. After fraudulently acquiring a passport, Rakesh fled the country in early 2023 and operated his criminal gang from abroad, forging alliances with local gangs and orchestrating violent acts, police said.
His affiliations extended to other criminal groups such as the Himanshu Bhau gang and Neeraj Faridpuria gang, contributing to a crime syndicate responsible for several high-profile crimes, including targeted killings and extortion, police said.
He was held responsible for notable incidents, including the murder of a 'Sarpanch' in Sonipat in December 2023, a firing incident at a famous sweet shop in Gohana in January this year, a murder at Murthal eatery and the shootout at an eating joint in Rajouri Garden, Delhi last month.
Singh said that the STF conducted a thorough investigation to locate Rakesh alias Kala Khairampuria. During the investigation, STF teams were able to establish and unearth a fake identity on which Kala had got his passport.
"Once his identity was established, the teams tracked his travel details and mounted surveillance on the target. After strenuous efforts, he was zeroed in a foreign country. The officials of STF immediately coordinated with the Ministry of Home Affairs and got the relevant Interpol references and notices issued against Kala," IG Singh said.
"The MHA promptly took cognizance of the matter and coordinated with various agencies both in India and abroad", IG Singh added.
The collaborative effort led to the deportation of Rakesh, and he was arrested by the STF teams from the Delhi airport on Friday night, Singh added.