Boxer helped undertrial flee, held

The Delhi police on Tuesday arrested a national-level boxer for his alleged involvement in the sensational escape of an undertrial from police custody in Bahadurgarh, Haryana, on July 30. The police arrested Deepak Pahal (20) from Ghumar area of Sonepat district of Haryana on Tuesday.

Deepak is part of a gang that helped Jitender, alias Gogi, escape from the Delhi police custody while he was being taken by bus from Rohini jail in north Delhi to a Sonepat court. Last week, the gang threw chilli powder in the eyes of four policemen escorting the undertrial prisoner and looted an MP5 rifle.

A crime branch team, working on the case, received an input that a member of the Gogi gang, later identified as Deepak, who had played a crucial role in his escape would come to Gandhi Nagar at Gannour (Sonepat). The police laid a trap and arrested him on Tuesday, said joint commissioner of police (crime branch) Ravindra Yadav.

Deepak had arranged two cars, including Hyundai i20, in which the gang members accosted the bus and later drove away with Jitender. The Hyundai i20 was later found to be a stolen vehicle.

“As part of the plan, Deepak, along with two gang members, sat as passengers in a state roadways bus, while the cars followed behind. They then stopped the bus at a pre-decided spot near village Sankhol in Bahadurgarh, threw chilli powder on the police personnel and escaped with Jitender. They also snatched an MP5 rifle from them,” he said.

During interrogation, Deepak revealed that he, along with Rohit, Deepak, Gulshan, Sanjay, Mohit and Praveen and three other accused from Uttar Pradesh, whose names he could not remember, had helped Gogi in escaping from the police custody.

Accused Deepak is a national-level boxer, was lightweight national champion in 2011 and was declared best boxer of Haryana in 2014. He also represented India in various international boxing competitions. Earlier, he was booked by the police for breaking teeth of a fellow boxer in 2014.