Ranchi: 2 more held in policewoman murder case

RANCHI: Three more persons have been arrested in connection with the murder of woman sub-inspector Sandhya Topno, taking the total number of those arrested to four so far. On Sunday, police said three persons were arrested after raids late on Saturday night while the driver of the pick-up van carrying illegal cattle who mowed down Topno earlier this week was the first to be nabbed.
The cattle smugglers ferrying the animals from Odisha had crushed Topno with their van when she tried to stop them near Hulhundu under the Tupudana police outpost on Tuesday night. The SI had succumbed to her injuries while being taken to the hospital.
SP (city) Anshuman Kumar, who is heading the special investigation team probing the case, said on Sunday that the main accused, Sajid Ansari, his father Tahir Ansari and his cousin Sahid Ansari have been arrested during raids conducted on Saturday.
Kumar said, “Sajid, who was in the speeding van that knocked down Topno, was nabbed near Naga Baba Khatal in Ranchi. Based on his information, Tahir and Sahid were arrested from different places. The vehicle driver, Md Nizar, was arrested soon after the incident and was sent to jail.” He added that raids are underway to arrest other accused persons in the case.
Police said they have vital clues regarding the smugglers right from sources of the cattle supply to the destinations after those arrested spilled the beans. Two traders residing in the Kantatoli area of Ranchi and the person who supplied the cattle to Sajid have been identified, they said.
During interrogation, Sajid and Nizar said they had resolved not to stop their vehicle even if the police stopped them.
Following the incident and the death of Topno, Ranchi SSP Kishore Kaushal suspended the officer-in-charge of the Tupudana outpost, Kanhaiya Singh, on Friday.