Patna: The special investigation team (SIT) is inching to crack the daylight murder of Maoist-gangster Santosh Jha on the Sitamarhi court premises on Tuesday.

The SIT is learnt to have information that the conspiracy to kill Santosh was hatched by jailed gangster Mukesh Pathak with the help of Ashwini Dubey alias Sonu Dubey who is at present lodged in the Motihari Central Jail.

Mukesh, sources in the SIT said, contacted Dubey and sought his help to execute the plan. Mukesh reportedly provided money to Dubey and asked him to arrange shooters who were not known to Santosh and his associates. Dubey's father is an assistant sub-inspector of police in Muzaffarpur.

"Dubey in turn assigned the task to Prince, a resident of Chakia in East Champaran district. Prince contacted a juvenile lodged in the Motihari remand home and helped him come out of the judicial custody on medical ground. The shooter was imparted training before being assigned the job," said an investigating officer.

Ashish Ranjan alias Devil, Shakeel Akhtar alias Aryan, Sanjeet Kumar Choudhary, Prince, Vikas Mahto and Nabeel Akhtar have been made accused in the case. While Vikas Mahto and Nabeel have been arrested, others are still at large. Sources claimed that Prince has been picked up for interrogation. Sitamarhi superintendent of police (SP) Vikas Burman said incarcerated gangster Mukesh is the mastermind of the murder. "Minor boys were being inducted into the gang and imparted training to commit crimes," he said.

The name of a juvenile, who was lodged in the Motihari-based remand home, has figured in the killing of Santosh Jha.

During interrogation, Vikas Mahto, who was arrested while trying to flee from the spot on Tuesday, disclosed that he along with Ashish Ranjan alias Devil had taken a room on rent in Sitamarhi to execute the plan. The two shooters had paid Rs 2,500 as rent to the owner of the house Ram Sagar Rai, a resident of Krishnapuri in Sitamarhi town.

SP Burman said Vikas had told the house owner that he was a student and was preparing for competitive examination. "Vikas attended classes at a private coaching institute in Sitamarhi for a few days to avoid police action," Burman quoted Vikas as saying.

Both Vikas and Ashish Ranjan did a recee of the court for almost a month. They hid their weapons in a bush inside the court a day before Santosh was to be produced in the court in an Arms Act case.