The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested a wanted accused linked to an arms smuggling racket operating between Nagaland and Bihar, the agency said on Friday.
The accused, identified as Manjoor Khan alias Babu Bhai, was a close aide of prime accused Vikash Kumar, who allegedly played a key role in trafficking prohibited bore weapons, including AK-47 rifles, from Nagaland to Bihar.
According to an NIA statement, investigations had revealed that Manjoor conspired with his associates to smuggle prohibited weapons to disturb public order and threaten national security.
The agency took over the case in August 2024. The case was originally registered by the police in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur district after the recovery of an AK-47 rifle and live ammunition at Murghatiya Bridge.
The police had earlier arrested four accused and filed a chargesheet under the Arms Act against them. After taking over the probe, the NIA filed the first supplementary chargesheet against the accused — Vikash Kumar, Satyam Kumar, Devmani Rai and Ahmad Ansari.
"A probe has revealed that Manjoor played a pivotal role in the conspiracy to smuggle prohibited bore weapons, including AK-47 rifles, with a clear intent to disrupt public peace and compromise national security. The NIA is actively pursuing leads to identify other conspirators, financers and potential end-users of the seized weapons," said an NIA official.
Coordination meet
A high-level coordination meeting of top security agencies was held in Panchkula on Friday, focusing on a joint strategy to counter emerging terror threats and the evolving challenges of organised crime in north India.