NORTH LAKHIMPUR, Dec 13 � The prime accused in the shooting of an Arunachal Pradesh-based journalist in July this year was arrested by Lakhimpur police recently. The dramatic arrest came after one Ajit Pegu, son of late Kanda Pegu of Baligaon along the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border near Banderdewa, was held when he tried to rob a local trader at Harmutty. According to police, Pegu had tried to rob one Ganesh Pal, a Harmutty-based trader, near the St Xavier�s School.
Pal was on his way home after closing his shop when Pegu tried to overpower him by hitting him on his head with the butt of his pistol. However, Pal managed to call out for help which attracted a crowd, forcing Pegu to release his victim. In the scuffle, he left behind his pistol and jacket. As the crowd moved towards the Harmutty Police Outpost for reporting the matter, Pegu returned to the spot in a different attire and searched for his lost pistol in the darkness.
While Pegu was groping in the dark, Harmutty IC Ajit Bhuyan spotted and nabbed him. His subsequent interrogation led to the arrest of Raj Pegu alias Moni Pegu, son of Chabi Lal Pegu of Ranga Reserve, Harmutty. A 7.65 MM Italian-made pistol with four rounds of live ammunition was also recovered by the police from his possession. A dreaded criminal by record, Raj Pegu has been involved in several cases of murder, robbery, kidnapping and extortion in Arunachal Pradesh and was under the police scanner since the shooting of the scribe in Itanagar in July. The arrest has been considered as a major breakthrough for the police in the ongoing investigation of the shooting incident.
