The Special Task Force (STF) of the crime branch wing of Odisha police busted a gun-running racket by arresting the kingpin of the gang in a raid at a village in Angul district.
The unlawfully procured arms including eight country-made revolvers and ammunition were seized from his possession.
Based on intelligence input regarding illegal possession and sale of illegal firearms, the firearm smuggler Ratnakar Kalta was arrested today near Kerjang village under the Chendipada police station jurisdiction of the district.
The modus operandi of the arms smuggler and the source of procurement of the illegal arms are being investigated, said Deputy Inspector General of Police, STF, Jai Narayan Pankaj.
In the continuing drive against arms smuggling, the STF has made the seizure of 64 firearms, 98 rounds of live ammunition, and arrested several lawbreakers since 2020, informed the STF official.