Mumbai:
Two men opened fire, while a third person, their accomplice, waited metres away on his motorcycle. After firing seven rounds targeting Bollywood actor Tiger Shroff, the three men fled on a bike, which they abandoned near Andheri West railway station before boarding a train to Jaipur. The motive was simple: an overseas job and money.
The initial investigation into the attack on Tiger Shroff on Sunday evening has revealed that the three men were promised assistance in securing a job abroad after the attack.
READ | How Mumbai Cops Tracked Down 3 Men Who Fired At Tiger Shroff Within 24 Hours
The three men - 22-year-old Hritik alias Roshan, from Begusarai in Bihar; Rehan (18), from Sonipat in Haryana; and Phool Singh (18), also from Haryana -- were given Rs 50,000 collectively as an advance to execute the attack. The three were promised more money after the successful execution of the attack.
Investigators are examining payments made to the accused via multiple small instalments to make the money trail difficult to trace.
According to sources, a handler communicated with one of the accused and lured them with financial gains. Police are also investigating the alleged role of the handler and other associates in recruiting and financing the accused.
Lawrence Bishnoi Link
Anil Pandit, an associate of jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, is suspected of being linked to the arrangement through the handler. Lawrence Bishnoi claimed responsibility for the attack on Shroff through Pandit.
Soon after the assassination bid, an audio file emerged on social media. In the clip, a man can be heard speaking in Hindi. He claimed to represent the Lawrence Bishnoi gang and took responsibility for the attack.
READ | Attack, Online Claim, Warning: Gangster Lawrence Bishnoi's Playbook Explained
He said: "I am Anil Pandit. I am like a younger brother to Lawrence Bishnoi. What happened with Tiger Shroff today, we take responsibility for that -- Harman Sandhu and myself."
He added that Tiger Shroff "was counselled, but did not understand us" and issued death threats to those linked to actor Salman Khan.
"In the entire film industry, whoever works without aligning with us, or works with Salman Khan, will be killed. This is the first and last warning."
Investigation So Far
The three accused were intercepted on Monday morning in Rajasthan's Kota while they were on a train and headed to Delhi. According to the police, the three men wanted to flee to Nepal.
READ | Mumbai To Kota To Delhi, Finally Nepal. Tiger Shroff's Shooters' Escape Plan
Around 20 special teams of the Crime Branch were formed to apprehend the accused.
"On the basis of fieldwork and technical analysis, the bike was traced near Andheri West Railway Station," the Mumbai Police said detailing how they zeroed in on the accused. "Based on CCTV footage and other technical analysis, we found out the path of the three. It was found that they had headed toward northern Mumbai and left for Surat. We then found out that they had left on the Pune-Jaipur Express. We found out which compartment they were on and informed Kota Police. The Kota Police nabbed them," said the deputy commissioner of police, Raj Tilak Roushan.
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