The convicts were identified as Ashish alias Nanha (32), Om Prakash alias Jagdish (55), Mukesh alias Arvind (26), Kallu alias Virendra (28), Tilku alias Samar Bahadur (35).
LUCKNOW: Five men convicted in a 2017 robbery-cum-murder case in Amethi were sentenced to life imprisonment by a Raebareli court following effective prosecution and monitoring under the Uttar Pradesh Police’s Operation Conviction campaign. The convicts were identified as Om Prakash alias Jagdish (55), Kallu alias Virendra (28), Tilku alias Samar Bahadur (35), Ashish alias Nanha (32), and Mukesh alias Arvind (26). The case dates back to May 24, 2017, when Babbhan, a resident of Pure Rani village under Mohanganj police station, informed police that unidentified armed men had killed his 65-year-old mother, Shyama, and 32-year-old brother, Madan, and looted valuables from their house. Investigating officer and then Mohanganj SHO Shekhar Singh recorded statements of 28 witnesses and submitted a charge sheet before the court on August 3, 2017, after finding sufficient evidence against the accused. “The trial continued through 217 hearings.
One of the six accused, Suresh alias Manoj, died during the pendency of the trial,” said Jitendra Tiwari, ADGC. “The conviction was secured following coordinated efforts by the prosecution officials, court police representatives and the monitoring cell under the Operation Conviction campaign, being conducted under the direction of the Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police,” said T Saravanan, SP, Amethi. Three of them are residents of Pure Garhi Aladdin in Bhikhimpur under Mohanganj police station in Amethi, while Ashish and Mukesh are residents of Asni under Maharajganj police station in Raebareli. Police arrested six accused during the investigation and recovered property allegedly looted during the robbery. The court considered the recovered stolen property, witness testimonies and other circumstantial evidence before holding the five accused guilty.
Additional District and Sessions Judge, Raebareli, Anil Kumar, sentenced each of the five convicts to life imprisonment under IPC Sections 396 (dacoity with murder) and 412 (dishonestly receiving property stolen during dacoity), along with a fine of Rs 1.5 lakh. An FIR was initially registered under Sections 302 and 394 of the IPC at Mohanganj police station. The case was subsequently altered to Sections 396 and 412 of the IPC.
In case of non-payment of the fine, they will undergo an additional year’s imprisonment. During the investigation, police found evidence indicating that the murders had been committed during a robbery.