Murder accused arrested after police encounter

Varanasi: A man accused of killing his friend on Apr 3 was arrested after an encounter with police, in which he suffered a bullet injury in the leg, in Mubarakpur police station area of Azamgarh district early Sunday morning. Azamgarh CO (Sadar) Astha Jaiswal said a team of Mubarakpur police was patrolling in the night when they were tipped about movement of the murder accused on Damodarpur road. Police team cordoned off the area and attempted to intercept him. On seeing police, the accused opened fire in a bid to escape but in retaliatory firing, suffered a bullet injury in the leg and was caught. Police rushed him to the hospital and recovered from him a country-made pistol, cartridges, mobile phone, white metal toe ring and the knife used in the crime.CO said the man arrested was identified as Irfan of Islampura. During interrogation, he confessed to stabbing his friend Mohammad Hasnain to death on Apr 3 over an old dispute. To avoid arrest, he had been changing his location continuously.