Police yesterday arrested a man who had provided details about Bablu Nath, a Nadia-based gold trader, to the police assistant sub-inspector and two other persons who robbed him on 4 July.

The man was arrested on Sunday night from a location within Muchipara police station limits after police got a concrete lead about his whereabouts. He has been identified as Mithun Nath (37). Originally from Krishnagunj in Nadia, he used to reside in Baishnabpara village of Santipur, the same locality in which the robbery victim resides.

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According to police sources, Mithun was wellknown to Bablu as he lived in the same neighbourhood and knew all the business activities of the gold trader. Mithun sold artificial plastic flowers in Dum Dum area where he came across Balai alias Dilip Sarkar, one of the accused in the robbery.

Mithun allegedly told Balai the details of Bablu Nath, who used to frequent the city to sell his gold ornaments, upon which Ashish Chandra, an assistant subinspector in the record section of Kolkata Police, hatched the plot to rob the businessman.

On the day of the robbery, Mithun had followed the victim from Mazdia railway station to Sealdah and helped the gang to identify him. The jewellery trader, Bablu Nath, had come to Sealdah on 4 July to conduct his business when the accused ASI accosted him, allegedly posing himself as an officer from the Muchipara police station.

He asked Nath to show the documents for the gold and cash that he was carrying. When Nath showed him the papers, the ASI claimed that the cash and gold were unaccounted. Nath was then forcibly pushed inside the car by two other accused, driver Nepal Chandra Dhar and his associate Balai.

Thereafter, they took him away from the place and took away all his cash and gold ornaments, including the gold rings that he was wearing on his fingers.

Nath somehow managed to free himself from their hands near Belgharia Expressway and lodged a complaint at Muchipara police station.

Later, police detained the ASI and two others and got important leads by interrogating them. Based on their statements, police tracked down Mithun and picked him up. Police has also come to known about the possible involvement of a police constable who is still absconding.