Three held in Ashok Vihar murder and robbery case

New Delhi: A man involved in a murder and robbery case in Ashok Vihar was shot in the leg during an encounter with police on Sunday night. Cops also apprehended two of his associates, who were involved in plotting and providing weapons.
The accused were identified as Sahil (22), Mohammad Faiyaaz (22) and Deepak (31). The victim, accountant Saroj Pathak, lived with his family in Shalimar Bagh village and worked at a factory in Wazirpur Industrial Area. He collected money from the factory everyday on his way home and gave it to the owner, who also stayed in his locality.
"It was his daily routine to collect money from the market and deliver it to the owner in the evening," a police officer said. Pathak was riding his scooter when he was stopped by the assailants, who were waiting for him. As they grabbed the bag, Pathak resisted and in the scuffle he was shot in the chest. The attackers then fled with the money. Police received a PCR call about the incident. Pathak was taken to a hospital by cops but was declared dead on arrival.
During questioning, police recovered the accused's motorcycle and Pathak's scooter from Alipur. "On March 2, we received information about the movements of the accused in Ashok Vihar area and a trap was laid. One of the accused, Sahil, was seen moving and he was told to stop, but instead, he fired at the cops. In retaliation, the team also fired and Sahil was injured in his right knee," the officer said.
DCP (northwest) Bhisham Singh said that Sahil confessed to his involvement in the robbery-cum-murder case. On his instance, co-accused Faiyaaz and Deepak were also nabbed. According to cops, eight people were involved in planning and executing the crime.
Police said Deepak, who worked in a nearby factory, provided information about Pathak's movement with cash. Cops recovered a country-made pistol, two empty cartridges, a live cartridge, a stolen motorcycle and the victim's scooter from the accused.