Two Held with Illegal Firearm While Allegedly Plotting Dacoity in Deoghar, Four Accomplices Escape

Deoghar: Kunda police claimed to have foiled a planned dacoity by arresting two alleged criminals with an illegal firearm and live ammunition during a late-night raid in the Sarkanda forest. Four of their accomplices, however, managed to flee under the cover of darkness, and raids are continuing to apprehend them.Addressing a press conference, Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) Kuldeep Kumar said the police received a tip-off on the night of July 2 that six armed men had gathered near Chanddih Road in the Sarkanda forest after parking their motorcycles and were planning to execute a major crime. Acting on the directions of Superintendent of Police (SP) Praveen Pushkar, a special raiding team was formed to verify the information and launch immediate action.The police team raided the forest and apprehended two suspects on the spot. The remaining four escaped by taking advantage of the darkness and the dense forest. Raids are underway to trace and arrest the absconding accused.During interrogation, the arrested men allegedly told police that the group had assembled to plan a dacoity in the Chanddih-Basmata area. Police also claimed that members of the gang had previously been involved in several incidents of dacoity, robbery and snatching. These claims are being verified as part of the investigation.The arrested accused have been identified as Avinash Sah (22), a resident of Chanddih-Basmata under Kunda police station, and Anar Paswan (26), a resident of Kurumtand under Saraiyahat police station in Dumka district.Police seized one country-made pistol, two live 8 mm KF cartridges, two mobile phones and three motorcycles, including a white Apache and two Pulsar motorcycles, during the raid.A case has been registered at Kunda Police Station as Case No. 82/2026 under Sections 310(4) and 310(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Sections 25(1-6A), 26 and 35 of the Arms Act. The operation was carried out by a team led by Kunda Police Station Officer-in-Charge Prashant Kumar, along with officers from Devipur Police Station and the district's technical branch. Police said efforts are continuing to arrest the four absconding suspects.