Pune: Burdened by a loan he had taken for his daughter’s medical treatment, a 38-year-old autorickshaw driver from Karvenagar allegedly turned to illegal firearm trafficking.The accused, Shabbir Shaikh, allegedly procured three country-made pistols and six cartridges worth Rs1.66 lakh through a middleman in Madhya Pradesh and brought them to Pimpri Chinchwad to sell. However, a Pimpri Chinchwad crime branch team led by assistant police inspector Harish Mane arrested him in Bhosari before he could dispose of the weapons.An officer said Shaikh needed money to repay the loan he had taken for his daughter’s treatment. About three years ago, a friend had given him the contact number of an arms dealer from Umrati in Madhya Pradesh.“Shaikh contacted the number on June 1. The person on the other end asked him to come to Shirpur in Dhule district to collect the firearms,” the officer said.Mane said Shaikh again borrowed Rs40,000 from a person in Kothrud and travelled to Shirpur on a motorcycle from Pune. After reaching the designated location, a man with his face covered arrived on a motorcycle without a registration number plate. He took Rs75,000 from Shaikh and handed over the firearms.“Shaikh had planned to sell the weapons and make money. While he was looking for customers, we received a tip-off, sent a decoy customer, and arrested him,” Mane said.The accused was produced before a court on Friday and remanded in police custody till June 30.
