Anuj Thapan, the man accused of providing the firearm used in the shooting incident outside Salman Khan’s home on April 14, died after allegedly attempting suicide in custody at the crime branch lockup in the police commissioner’s office in Mumbai on Wednesday.
He was rushed to St. George Hospital for emergency medical treatment after he was found in a critical condition in the lockup. He died while undergoing treatment at the hospital, officials confirmed.
Thapan was arrested by the Mumbai Police along with Sonu Subhash Chander from Punjab on April 25.
In the wee hours of April 14, two bike-borne men had opened fire outside Salman’s Galaxy Apartments. The crime branch later arrested the two alleged shooters Vikas Kumar Gupta and Sagar Kumar Pal from Gujarat.
The shooters had done shooting practice in Bihar, said police.
The Mumbai Crime Branch described the attack as a “carefully planned assault,” backed by CCTV footage showing one of the suspects firing towards Salman Khan’s residence.
Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Kutch West, Mahendra Bagadiya, indicated that the investigation suggested that all the accused had been contracted by the Lawrence Bishnoi gang to carry out the shooting at Khan’s house.
On April 27, the Mumbai police invoked the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) in connection with the firing incident outside actor Salman Khan’s residence in Bandra on April 14.
MCOCA provisions have been applied to shooters Vicky Gupta (24) and Sagar Pal (21), along with Sonu Kumar Chander Bishnoi (37) and Anuj Thapan (32), who stand accused of providing two firearms and bullets. Furthermore, gangster Lawrence Bishnoi and his brother Anmol Bishnoi are identified as wanted suspects in the case.