Rs 50,000 Cash, And Signal Chats: Revelations In Rohit Shetty House Firing

In a major revelation in connection with the firing outside filmmaker Rohit Shetty's home, investigators have found that a sum of Rs 3 lakh was promised to the accused. The Lawrence Bishnoi gang, which has claimed responsibility for the firing, paid Rs 50,000 to them in advance, sources have said.

The Mumbai Crime Branch has found that Deepak Sharma, Sonu Kumar and Sunny Kumar, who allegedly carried out the shooting, received this cash advance. They did not receive any other payment.

The investigation has revealed that Shubham Lonkar, a member of the Bishnoi gang, sent this amount to Deepak through Vishnu Kushwaha, one of the accused, before Deepak left Agra for Mumbai. Police are investigating how Lonkar arranged this cash in Agra.

The sources said that five accused from Pune, who allegedly arranged logistics for the firing, were paid Rs 51,000 in cash. Police are now trying to establish the supply chain and money trail behind the firing.

The investigation has revealed that the alleged shooter, Deepak, fled to Haryana after the incident with the weapon used in the firing. Police have recovered the weapon, and it appears to be a sophisticated firearm. It has been sent for forensic testing, which will confirm the make. The weapon was recovered when the three accused, who allegedly carried out the shooting, were arrested from a factory in Haryana's Jhajjar, where they were hiding.

According to sources, Lonkar plotted the conspiracy with the other accused over the Signal app, an encrypted call and messaging platform, to ensure the conversations could not be tracked.

The investigation has revealed that the accused Sonu had been living in Kalyan for about two years and Deepak stayed with him after reaching Mumbai. Sonu then showed him Shetty's home and also provided information about the area.

According to police, these accused wanted to make quick money and were drawn to the Bishnoi gang by its rising notoriety and social media traction. The investigators are now trying to put together how money, arms, and other logistics were arranged to carry out the attack.

Four shots were fired outside Shetty's Juhu residence on the night of January 31. Rohit Shetty was at home during the incident and no injuries were reported. Earlier, shots were fired outside actor Salman Khan's Mumbai home. In that case too, the Bishnoi gang's name has come up.