Chemist murder was a planned hit, not mistaken identity: Chandigarh Police

The murder of a cashier at a Sector 11 chemist shop in Chandigarh last week was allegedly a planned hit and not a case of mistaken identity, with police sources claiming that the victim had been identified beforehand and surveilled before the attack.

Police sources told The Indian Express that an absconding accused, Amit Kumar, had allegedly spent around Rs 25,000 on each of the two arrested accused — Sunny Mehra and Aryan Sharma — before the shooting, arranging clothes, shoes and other logistics.

Police suspect the duo were recruited to execute the killing and had been promised additional payment after the job was completed.

The fresh details emerged hours after Sunny and Aryan were injured in a police encounter on Thursday morning when they allegedly attempted to escape custody and opened fire at a police team while being brought to Chandigarh from Jammu, where they had been arrested a day earlier in connection with the June 13 murder of Janki Das, 45, a cashier at Shri Kumar Medicos in Sector 11.

According to sources, police have found no indication that Janki Das was killed due to mistaken identity. Instead, investigators suspect the assailants conducted a recce of the victim before the attack. Sources said Sunny had allegedly been instructed to target the man seated at the counter wearing spectacles, while Amit allegedly entered the chemist shop with him and identified Janki Das moments before the shooting.

Police sources believe Amit played a key role in the conspiracy. According to sources, he had allegedly been in touch with certain gangsters operating from Punjab through an intermediary based in Jammu and Kashmir. Investigators suspect he was tasked with arranging the killing and subsequently recruited Sunny and Aryan for the operation.

Sources said the reconstructed sequence of events suggests that Amit and Sunny entered the chemist shop together on the afternoon of June 13, while Aryan remained outside near the motorcycle allegedly used in the crime. After the victim was identified, Sunny allegedly opened fire at close range before the trio fled.

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Janki Das sustained multiple gunshot injuries and later succumbed to them at PGIMER.

The Special Investigation Team (SIT), comprising officers from the Crime Branch, Operations Cell, District Crime Cell and Sector 11 police station, subsequently launched a multi-state investigation involving CCTV analysis, technical surveillance, intelligence gathering and coordinated raids across Chandigarh, Punjab, Delhi and Jammu and Kashmir.

According to police, the accused had arrived in Chandigarh on a stolen motorcycle bearing a Punjab registration number. After the murder, they allegedly fled towards Bougainvillea Garden and Kajheri before reaching ISBT Sector 43. Investigators said the accused later travelled to Delhi by bus and subsequently reached Jammu and Kashmir by train.

Detailed scrutiny of CCTV footage, hotel records and technical evidence helped investigators identify the accused as Sunny Mehra, 22, and Aryan Sharma, 19, both residents of Jammu and Kashmir, along with Amit Kumar, who remains absconding.

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Police sources said Amit separated from Sunny and Aryan after they reached Kajheri. The latter two allegedly continued their journey to Delhi and later Jammu, where Chandigarh Police teams tracked and arrested them on Wednesday evening following raids at multiple locations.

Meanwhile, the two accused sustained bullet injuries to their legs during an encounter with Chandigarh Police early Thursday.

According to police, the incident occurred between 4.30 am and 5 am in the Panjab University area while the accused were being transported to Chandigarh. The police vehicle carrying them allegedly met with an accident after entering Chandigarh from the Punjab side, resulting in injuries to some police personnel.

Police said a service weapon carried by one of the officials fell during the accident.

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According to Chandigarh Police IG Pushpendra Kumar, Sunny picked up the weapon and attempted to flee. Despite repeated warnings, he allegedly opened fire on the police party. Police said two rounds were fired by the accused, striking the police vehicle behind which personnel had taken cover.

The police party initially fired a warning shot and subsequently retaliated when the accused allegedly continued trying to escape. During the exchange, four rounds were fired by the police team.

Sunny sustained two bullet injuries to his left leg, while Aryan suffered a bullet injury to his right leg. The driver of the police vehicle was also injured. All three were shifted to Government Multi-Speciality Hospital, Sector 16, where they are undergoing treatment.

Police said efforts were underway to arrest Amit Kumar and establish the full conspiracy behind the murder, including possible links to organised criminal networks and extortion activities.

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Officials indicated that further arrests and disclosures were likely as the investigation progresses.