News Desk
In a sweeping operation that underscored the growing sophistication of cross-border crime, the Delhi Police announced on Sunday the arrest of four men accused of trafficking foreign-made pistols into northern India. Investigators say the network was linked to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence, or ISI, and relied on drones to ferry weapons across the Punjab frontier.
Authorities seized 10 high-caliber handguns and nearly 100 rounds of ammunition, including Turkish PX-5.7 pistols typically reserved for elite forces and Chinese PX-3 variants wrapped in carbon paper to evade radar detection. The cache, police said, was destined for organized crime groups operating across Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab.
“This is not just a criminal enterprise; it’s a calculated effort to arm gangs and destabilize the region,” Sanjeev Kumar Yadav, deputy commissioner of police for the Crime Branch, told reporters. “The ISI’s fingerprints are all over this — from the handlers directing the drops to the hawala channels funding the operation.”
The operation began on Nov. 19, when intelligence tipped off officers to a white sedan headed toward a temple in Rohini for a weapons handoff. A stakeout near the Khatu Shyam Temple led to the interception of the vehicle. Inside, police found a duffel bag hidden in the car’s speaker compartment containing eight pistols and 84 cartridges. Two men from Punjab — Mandeep Singh, 38, and Dalvinder Kumar, 34 — were arrested.
Interrogations quickly widened the net. Two more suspects, Rohan Tomar, 30, and Ajay alias Monu, 37, were detained in Uttar Pradesh, yielding additional pistols and ammunition. All four men face prior charges ranging from murder to narcotics violations.
Investigators allege the men were recruited by Jaspreet, known as Jas, an associate of fugitive gangster Sonu Khatri, who is believed to be hiding in the United States under a Red Corner Notice. Mr. Khatri’s syndicate, police say, coordinated with ISI-linked suppliers in Pakistan to orchestrate nighttime drone drops at GPS-marked sites along Punjab’s porous border. Couriers retrieved the packages and funnelled them to gangs in Delhi, including networks tied to the slain gangster Tillu Tajpuria and the Lawrence Bishnoi group.
Drone incursions along the 553-kilometer Punjab frontier have surged, with the Border Security Force reporting more than 300 incidents in the past year. While most involve narcotics, arms seizures have spiked, with Punjab police recovering pistols and grenades in at least a dozen drone-related cases since August.
Experts warn that the tactic not only floods criminal underworlds with military-grade firepower but also risks reigniting unrest in a region scarred by decades of militancy. The suspects used encrypted apps and virtual numbers registered in Pakistan to coordinate shipments, police said. Investigators are now combing through seized devices for evidence of additional consignments.
“We’ve only scratched the surface,” Mr. Yadav said. “This network supplied hit men and extortion rackets — every pistol we seize prevents a potential bloodbath.”
The arrests have renewed calls for bolstered border surveillance, including electronic jammers and AI-driven drone trackers. With Delhi and its surrounding region recording more than 100 targeted killings this year, officials say the bust represents a rare victory — but also a stark reminder of the transnational threats festering beyond the fence.
