Rourkela, Aug. 25: Police have arrested a 40-year-old man for allegedly firing at a business rival last June from an unlicensed revolver here.

The accused, identified as Mukesh Gupta, was allegedly involved in sex trade here.

He has been remanded in judicial custody after Plant Site police arrested him and produced him before court. Upendra Pradhan, the inspector in charge of the police station, said: "We had information about his movements and managed to nab him."

The cops had earlier raided his house at Hamirpur. "We have recovered the 9mm pistol he used. He has admitted that he had purchased the firearm from Budu, Jharsuguda resident for Rs 12,000."

Gupta allegedly procured girls from Bengal and supplied them to his customers here. He was said to have been threatened by one Akash Dikshit, who was also eager to enter the same business with 43-year-old autorickshaw driver Manoj Singh as his associate.

The police said Mukesh was tipped off that Akash had recruited girls from Calcutta and was searching for customers. He came to know that Akash and Manoj had gathered at a field near Janata Nivas with the girls and the customers.

Mukesh reached the spot, where he had an altercation with Akash, and allegedly fired at him from his gun. However, the bullet missed Akash and he fled the scene.

A police patrol reached the spot and arrested one Md Arman and later Akash. Mukesh, however, managed to evade the cops.

Pradhan said that rivalry over sex trade led to the shooting.