TURA: Police in Williamnagar have arrested a man and seized an AK-56 rifle that was taken from a hideout of the banned GNLA outfit to be sold in the black market.
The recovery was made on Monday night after police received a tip off from one of their source about the weapon being in the hands of a villager from Chachatgre village, barely 2 kms from Williamnagar town located across the Simsang river.
Chachatgre is the same village from where the late GNLA chief Sohan D Shira hailed from.
Police search teams raided the house of Tengrik N Marak (20 years) and unearthed the AK weapon from his compound along with 13 live rounds, four mobile phones, a foldable solar charger and file folders.
The accused told police that he found the weapon, sometime back, in a hideout at Dorengkigre village and had kept it concealed so as to sell it off in the black market.
“He (accused) knew the site where the GNLA had hidden the weapon as he had links with the outfit and worked for them,” informed East Garo Hills Superintendent of Police R T G Momin.
Dorengkigre village was once a militant stronghold at the height of the GNLA insurgency and witnessed many an encounter between the group and security forces.
After the death of the GNLA chief and subsequent surrendered of the rebels, huge cache of weapons were recovered from several hideouts, including Dorengkigre, in the subsequent months.
Despite the frequent haul of illegal weapons, many hideouts containing more arms are believed to remain in the thick forests of Durama Hills which police continue to search to prevent anti social elements from getting their hands on.