New Delhi, July 28 — The Delhi Police's Crime Branch has arrested two more key operatives linked to transnational arms trafficking and a terror network with suspected links to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), officials said on Tuesday.
The arrests were made as part of an ongoing investigation into a major arms smuggling and terror financing case registered earlier this year.
According to the Crime Branch, the latest operation led to the arrest of Mehfooz Ali alias Bobby alias Kabutar, 43, and Mohd. Ahmad, 35, both alleged to be important members of the international arms trafficking module headed by fugitive gangster Shahbaz Ansari.
With these arrests, the total number of accused persons apprehended in the case has risen to 18. Police have so far recovered 32 sophisticated foreign-made weapons and 363 live cartridges from various accused persons connected to the network.
The operation was carried out by a team of the Anti-Robbery and Snatching Cell (ARSC) of the Crime Branch, led by Inspectors Man Singh and Sunder Gautam, under the supervision of ACP Sanjay Kumar Nagpal and overall supervision of DCP Chandra Kumar Singh.
The arrests were made in connection with FIR No. 49/2026, registered on March 14, at the Crime Branch Police Station under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the Arms Act, and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
Investigators said the case pertains to an international arms trafficking and terror module allegedly involved in smuggling sophisticated foreign-made weapons into India and supplying them to organised criminal gangs, terrorist elements and other anti-national networks.
Prior to the latest arrests, 16 accused persons had already been apprehended in the case. Police had recovered 28 firearms, including one sub-machine gun, along with 281 live cartridges from their possession.
Police identified Mehfooz Ali, also known as Bobby and Kabutar, as a resident of Jafrabad in North-East Delhi. He studied up to Class 8 and initially worked in his family’s lock manufacturing business after leaving school in 1998.
According to investigators, Mehfooz gradually became associated with criminal gangs operating in North-East Delhi and was first arrested in 2006 in an attempt-to-murder case linked to gang rivalry. Over the years, he allegedly emerged as an active member of several organised criminal groups involved in violent gang wars and contract killings.
Police records indicate his alleged involvement in multiple murder cases, including those related to the killings of Sabir Ali alias Nanhe, Irshad, Akil Mama, Zahid, and Nadeem alias Chacha Fadu. He has also been linked to several notorious criminals and gangsters operating in Delhi.
His name reportedly surfaced in a Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) case in 2019, following which he remained absconding for a considerable period.
Investigators claim that Mehfooz maintained close ties with jailed gangster Hashim Baba and allegedly assisted him in various criminal activities.
According to police, in 2021 he facilitated the movement of shooters allegedly associated with the murder of Punjabi singer Sidhu Moose Wala. Officials alleged that after the crime, he collected mobile phones and internet dongles used by the shooters and destroyed the electronic evidence by throwing the devices into the Yamuna River.
Police further alleged that in 2022, acting on instructions from Hashim Baba and in coordination with another criminal associate, Rashid Cable, Mehfooz received a consignment of sophisticated foreign-made pistols and delivered them to associates of gangster Jaggu Bhagwanpuria who had arrived from Punjab.
Investigators said this made him an important link in the supply chain of illegal foreign-made firearms to organised criminal syndicates operating across northern India.
According to the Crime Branch, Mehfooz was an active member of an international illegal arms trafficking syndicate headed by Salim Ahmed alias Salim Pistol, in association with fugitive gangsters Shahbaz Ansari and Rehan Ansari.
Police alleged that the syndicate procured sophisticated foreign-made firearms from Pakistan and smuggled them into India through Nepal. Weapon components were allegedly concealed inside specially fabricated welding machines and gearboxes and transported through air cargo to Kathmandu.
After reaching Nepal, the consignments were allegedly smuggled into India and distributed through members of the syndicate.
Investigators claim that Mehfooz received the consignments, assembled the weapon parts into fully functional firearms, stored them at secure locations in Delhi and supplied them to organised criminal gangs and other recipients on the instructions of Salim Pistol.
Police further alleged that Shahbaz Ansari and his associates were not merely involved in arms trafficking for financial gain but were also supplying sophisticated weapons to terrorist organisations, criminal syndicates and anti-national elements.
According to investigators, Mehfooz disclosed that Salim Pistol had instructed associates to build a large cache of weapons for possible use in indiscriminate firing at crowded public places with the intention of spreading terror and disturbing public order.
Even after Salim Pistol allegedly shifted to Dubai in 2023, Mehfooz continued operating as one of his principal associates in India, police said.
Investigators also alleged that Mehfooz, along with his brother Imran and associate Nadeem alias Chacha Fadu, established an illegal firearm manufacturing and assembly unit in Jafrabad, North-East Delhi.
Police records show that Mehfooz Ali has been named in several serious criminal cases registered in Delhi over the last two decades, including cases related to murder, attempt to murder, organised crime, illegal arms possession and offences under the UAPA.
His criminal history includes cases registered at Jafrabad, Seemapuri, New Usmanpur, Farsh Bazar, New Friends Colony, Special Cell, and Crime Branch police stations.
The second accused, Mohd. Ahmad, is a resident of Jaunpur district in Uttar Pradesh. He studied up to Class 10 before discontinuing his education in 2010.
Police said he initially worked at a mobile phone shop and later at a computer store in Korba, Chhattisgarh. After returning to Uttar Pradesh, he allegedly came into contact with criminal elements and entered the illegal arms trade.
According to investigators, Ahmad's criminal activities began in 2013 after he came into contact with alleged arms trafficker Amit Yadav.
Police said he was arrested in connection with a firing incident in Azamgarh and later became involved in other serious criminal cases, including a murder case.
In 2015, he established contact with several arms traffickers operating in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar and began procuring country-made weapons from Munger in Bihar for supply across Uttar Pradesh.
In 2020, Ahmad allegedly came into contact with Wasim Malik of Delhi, who introduced him to the trade in sophisticated foreign-made firearms.
According to police, he regularly collected weapons from Delhi and transported them to Uttar Pradesh for sale.
Following his release from jail in 2025, Ahmad allegedly resumed arms trafficking and was introduced to Mohd Rahil, a key operative of the transnational arms trafficking module directly connected to Shahbaz Ansari.
Investigators alleged that during the past year, Ahmad procured approximately 15 to 20 foreign-made pistols and 50 to 60 live cartridges through the network and supplied them to criminals operating in Shahganj, Azamgarh and neighbouring areas of Uttar Pradesh.
Police said he functioned as a distributor, selling weapons through associates, retaining a commission ranging from Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 per firearm and transferring the remaining proceeds to other members of the network.
The Crime Branch alleged that the proceeds generated through the illegal arms trade were intended to fund terrorist activities within India.
Police records indicate that Ahmad is involved in multiple criminal cases, including those related to murder, illegal possession of firearms and violations of the Arms Act in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Delhi.
Investigators said he is suspected to be involved in around 10 serious criminal cases, including murder, attempt to murder and illegal arms trafficking. Verification of his complete criminal record is currently underway.
Following the latest arrests, the Crime Branch recovered a significant cache of sophisticated foreign-made weapons and ammunition, including a sub-machine gun manufactured in the Czech Republic, three semi-automatic pistols manufactured in Italy and the Czech Republic, and 82 live cartridges.
Officials said the investigation is continuing to identify other members of the network, trace financial transactions and uncover the full extent of the alleged transnational arms trafficking and terror-linked operations.