Thaindian News

Ghaziabad, July 23 (IANS) The motive behind the July 20 killing of a shoe and apparel firm’s senior executive was being narrowed down to him not fulfilling extortion demands and being gunned down by hired killers, Ghaziabad police said Monday.

Nitin Sharma, 38, an assistant general manager (AGM) with Woodland, was shot dead outside his house number 826 in sector-4 of Shakti Khand in Indirapuram when he returned home after dropping his two daughters at school in the morning.

Sharing the investigation proceedings, a source in the probe team revealed that the AGM was shot dead by .30 calibre automatic weapon. Sharma sustained seven bullet injuries in the upper portion of his body which included head and the upper abdomen.

Such injuries indicate that the killers were experts in their profession. They might have been hired by some extortionists, the source said.

Earlier, police suspected some sacked staffers for a role in the killing but ruled it out, saying they could not have been capable of engaging such highly skilled hired killers.

Checking the call details of Sharma in recent times, the police found lenghty calls to a Rohtak-based lecturer, who reportedly was his childhood friend. Investigations also ruled out her hand in the murder, said the source.

The motive of the killing is now being narrowed down to the victim not fulfilling the demand of extortion. The investigation is being processed carefully focussing the extortion angle but keeping all the other possible angles in mind, added the source.

“To establish the extortion motive, the police have to screen the AGM’s activities of at least last one year very carefully. The family cooperation with the utmost urge is needed in such investigation. The police are working on this line whose result will come a bit late but factually right,” added the source.

Superintendent of Police (City) Shiv Shankar Yadav had criticised the publication of a report by a section of media without the version of an authorised police personnel.

He said the story of lengthy calls with the Rohtak-based lecturer, which had been highlighted by media, has also been ruled out.

“We have constituted four teams of competent police officers to nab the criminals and have further strengthened it by restructuring it. We are working on all possible leads but till now we are in no position to pin-point any conclusion,” Yadav told IANS.

The assailants initially had a brief conversation with Sharma and then opened indiscriminate firing at him.