A gangster described by the police as a “longstanding headache” was allegedly killed in an encounter Saturday evening. The gangster, Uttam Yadav, gained notoriety in March after a video showed him daring the police to arrest him.
According to the Jharkhand DGP Anurag Gupta, police received reports that Uttam Yadav, a wanted man in the state, was seen near the Bagra–Jabra road under Chatra’s Simaria police station.
“When the police team reached the spot, Yadav opened fire on the personnel, forcing them to retaliate,” he said.
Yadav was allegedly wounded in the gunfight and was rushed to Chatra Sadar Hospital, where doctors declared him dead. Police also recovered an Apache motorcycle believed to belong to him.
“This is a major breakthrough — a top criminal has been killed in an encounter in Chatra district this evening, though the operation was carried out by the Hazaribagh police. He had a long record of cases against him,” he said.
With a litany of murder, robbery and extortion cases against him in Chatra and Hazaribagh police, Yadav was in the news in March after Aman Sahu, another notorious gangster, was killed in a police encounter. In a video soon after that encounter, Yadav is purportedly seen threatening and mocking the police and saying that he had “replaced the Aman Sahu gang in the area”.
After a heist at a jewellery store at Hazaribagh on June 22, Yadav released a video purportedly claiming responsibility. In that video, Yadav is seen holding up a carbine and is purportedly heard threatening businessmen.
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According to the police, Yadav had been on the run for over a year.
“One of his associates has also been arrested, allegedly with weapons during a separate raid,” the DGP said, adding: “Searching operations for his other associates are still underway”.
