Lucknow: Two months after National Investigation Agency (NIA) officer Tanzil Ahmed was shot dead, the mastermind behind his murder has been arrested by the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF), a senior officer said today.
Muneer, who masterminded the murder, was arrested by the STF from Noida, he said. Muneer was in Noida for the last three days and was arrested along with two associates. A 9mm pistol was also recovered.
A former student of the Aligarh Muslim University, Muneer is allegedly involved in two other murder cases.
Motorcycle-borne assailants had pumped 24 bullets into 45-year-old Ahmad and four into his wife Farzana Khatoon in April last when he was on his way to Delhi.
The accused followed Ahmad, who was returning home to Sahaspur village, Bijnor district with his family after attending his niece's wedding in another village on the intervening night of April 2 and 3.
The attackers overtook his vehicle at Sahaspur village and Muneer allegedly fired at Ahmed and his wife. Farzana succumbed to injuries at AIIMS 10 days after the incident.
Their children, aged 14 and 12, who were told by their father to duck, survived the attack.
So far four persons had been arrested by the police in connection with the NIA officer's murder.
Earlier, police arrested Rizvan, Tanzeem, Rehan and Zainul in this connection.
Uttar Pradesh Police had claimed to have solved the case by arresting Rehan, who is the nephew of Ahmad's brother-in-law, along with Zainul.
After the arrests, the police had contended that domestic dispute was the motive behind the crime.
