Southern Ave crime 4th in a month to see use of firearms in Kolkata

Kolkata: In the wake of back-to-back shootings in south Kolkata, Kolkata Police is sending teams to Siwan in Bihar and Giridih in Jharkhand in search of some arms dealers believed to have roots in Kolkata and Hooghly. They are reportedly selling weapons to “anyone interested”.
The latest use of firearm was at Lake Avenue on Thursday evening when three of the accused from Jharkhand – one of them working as the temporary sweeper at the victim’s residence – tried to rob elderly couple Debasish Dey (65) and his wife Poonam (59) at their residence on the eighth floor of a flat in the upscale Southern Avenue neighbourhood.

“We have questioned the accused even in the latest incident and traced some routes that are being used repeatedly to procure firearms. These are not organized and hence difficult to track. We are holding discussions with Bihar and Jharkhand Police in this regard,” said an officer.
The cops have claimed that the three robbery accused had been in Kolkata for a month and a half and had carried recce of Lake Avenue multiple times before choosing to strike at the residence of the elderly couple, thinking they will meet with “least resistance”.
While accused Sandip Das was asked to temporarily take up the sweeper’s job when the original sweeper — who has been employed here for five years — went back to Jharkhand, his associates came to Kolkata a month and a half back and were working as construction labourers. While Sandip was residing at New Alipore, his aides were staying at New Town.
Tollygunge Police also suspect a close connection of the three men back in Jharkhand and are keen to know if they had been “contracted” to come to Kolkata. They also wish to know if the accused were involved in any crimes in Giridih and Deoghar. Police also believe that more people might be involved in the incident.
“To gather more details about the suspects' residences in Giridih, any connections to criminal gangs and their families, a police team is heading to Giridih,” said an officer at Lalbazar.
The investigation has so far revealed that the victims were surprised to see two strangers with their sweeper. Before Debashis could understand the situation, the three forced their way inside and attempted the robbery. The gang fled when Poonam screamed, firing a round as they left. No one was injured in the incident. Police arrived at the scene upon receiving the news and arrested the three individuals based on mobile phone evidence.