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Kendrapara, Dec. 17: Police today recovered a huge cache of arms and ill-gotten wealth in a pre-dawn crackdown on the house of a gangster.
“The police conducted a raid on the house of Seikh Usman Ali alias Tito today. The raid is continuing. Though Tito was arrested about seven months ago, we had received feedback that his brothers and other key associates were operating their racket. We have recovered huge amount of cash, gold and land records of several homestead plots in prime urban localities,” said Kendrapara police superintendent Narasingha Bhol.
Two of the gangster’s younger brothers, Syed Ashtaq Ali and Syed Dilshan Ali, who were running the crime syndicate, have also been taken into custody.
Sources in the police said that apart from arms, gold worth about Rs 30 lakh, an Innova vehicle and land records of rights of over a dozen of residential plots were recovered.
Gangster Seikh Usman Ali was arrested on May 15. He is still in jail.
He had floated a trade union and had given a call for employment of youths in industries in neighbouring Paradip town.
The gangster-turned-self-proclaimed trade union leader, however, kept the crime syndicate operational by tender-fixing and extorting traders, contractors and builders.
In another development, some contractors, who had taken Ali’s assistance in getting government construction projects, have fled apprehending arrest following the raid. Some other associates of Ali have also fled fearing arrest.
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