The three men, who were posing as media persons, fired at Atiq and Ashraf from point-blank range, killing the gangster-turned-politician and his brother on the spot. They later surrendered to the police.
Live updates: Atiq Ahmed, brother shot dead
According to the police, the shooters said they killed the duo to make a name for themselves in the world of crime.
Here’s what else we know about the shooters so far …
* The assailants have been identified as Lavlesh Tiwari (22) of Banda, Mohit alias Sunny (23) of Hamirpur and Arun Maurya (18) of Kasganj.
* The names of at least two of them already figure in the records of police stations in Uttar Pradesh.
* A Banda resident and neighbour, who did not want to be named, told media persons that Lavlesh Tiwari’s family was unlike the rogue son, whom he also described as a “drug addict”.
“His family has been our neighbour. The family is simple. Two of his brothers are priests while one is still studying. Lavlesh has been into crime and has been to jail several times. He has also gone to jail in an eve-teasing case earlier,” the neighbour said, adding that Tiwari had ambitions to earn a big name in the world of crime.
* In Hamirpur, a neighbour said Mohit, also known as Sunny, had not been living in the area for about 10 years.
“He was a resident of Kurara, and was normal when he was young. He went to jail after a brawl, after which his mentality changed and he entered the world of crime. After a few incidents, he left Kurara. He was in Hamirpur jail for about a year,” he said.
* In Kasganj, the neighbours of Arun Maurya expressed shock over the incident. The alleged shooter’s parents are dead. Two of his brothers are in the scrap business in Delhi, the neighbours told reporters.
They also claimed that no one in the village knew what Maurya did and where he lived. He too appeared to have left the village about a decade ago.
‘Shooters wanted to be famous’
Meanwhile, according to the UP Police FIR, the accused told police they wanted to make a name for themselves and establish their identity in the state by eliminating Atiq Ahmad‘s gang.
They said they couldn’t make their escape because of the swift police action, according to the FIR.
“Since the time we got to know about the police custody of Atiq and Ashraf, we were planning to murder them. So we posed as journalists and when we got the right opportunity, we pulled the trigger and implemented the plan,” one of the accused told police.
Police said the three assailants had joined the group of reporters who were trying to get sound bites from the two gangsters. The men suddenly dropped their camera and whipped out the arms, they said.
Police have charged the three men for murder and attempt to murder, as well as under the Arms Act. At least two firearms were recovered from the site of the shooting.
(With inputs from PTI)
Watch Atiq Ahmed killers: What we know so far about them
