Fuel station worker killed in Tura Wine shop manager looted at gunpoint
TURA: The law and order situation in Garo Hills has virtually gone to the dogs as the region witnessed three separate incidents of murder, abduction and looting since Monday night.
Suspected Garo militants came up to a petrol station on the outskirts of Tura town and opened fire in broad daylight killing the pump worker on Tuesday morning.
The killing sent shock waves throughout the largest and most important town in Garo Hills and immediately led to the lightning closure of all fuel stations.
Two men in a black pulsar bike drove up to Rachel petrol pump in Bokmagre from the Danakgre side and asked the pump operator Bittu Patel to fill their tank up at 8:30 am. The station is located a little beyond Nehru park on the Damalgre road and the militants took advantage of the heavy downpour that was taking place at the time of the attack.
When the 26-year-old worker, also known as Bittu Kumar, walked up to them to fill the tank the pillion rider whipped out a pistol and opened fire from close range hitting Bittu on the chest. He died from his wounds.
The two assailants immediately drove off in the same direction they came from leaving the rest of the pump workers in shock and fear.
Police have pointed the finger of suspicion on the ANVC-B and ASAK militants for the cold blooded killing of an unarmed man.
“The ANVC-B militants are known to be moving in that area for quite some time and ASAK militants are also operating in the area since one can flee in the direction of either Mellim or even Pelga falls from the direction of Bokmagre. But we do not rule out GNLA role also,” informed a top police official.
Gunmen loot store manager: In another incident, the manager of a wine store who was taking the day’s earnings back to the owner was looted at gunpoint in the heart of Chandmari locality, less than a hundred yards from the police beat house, on Tuesday night.
The manager of the oldest wine store at Chandmari market had just closed his shop and was proceeding towards K.A. road to hand over the day’s earnings to the owner at approximately 7:45 pm when he was accosted by the armed boys next to the Chandmari branch of SBI.
Two boys stopped the manager next the SBI ATM counter after brandishing what appeared to be pistols while four other gang members came up from behind the victim. They snatched the bag containing the day’s earnings and ordered the manager to turn back and head home. All six attackers had their faces covered.
After taking the bag containing the money amounting to several thousand rupees the gang fled on foot towards the K.A. Road direction.
The daring incident in the heart of Chandmari market has shocked many of the local residents.
Banker’s son abducted
In another case of abduction in the Garo Hills, a 9-year old son of a bank employee was kidnapped from Bolarbita village of Chibinang area in Tikrikilla on Monday night.
The incident took place in the house of the banker when a gang of criminals forcibly entered the house and took away 9-year-old Lobayed Abrar Wasi. The victim’s father identified as Anwar Hussain is a bank employee of the Meghalaya Co-operative Apex Bank and works at the Garobadha branch.
West Garo Hills police informed that the crime was conducted by a gang of criminals and operations were on to rescue the boy.