LUCKNOW: Meerut police on Thursday busted a gang of around 35 members suspected to have murdered 250 persons since 2003 in Lucknow, Jhansi, Kanpur, Meerut and other places of UP.

The gang, which was busted on Thursday, claimed to have killed 50-odd policemen during raids and highway attacks in areas that included Faizabad, Allahabad, Gorakhpur, Bahraich, Meerut and Bulandshahr districts.

Police believe that the gang exploited the lack of inter-district co-ordination of UP Police and managed to keep the cops away despite striking even as many as six times in a single day.

The gang was always on the move picking up targets posing as taxi drivers. Unsuspecting passengers then were robbed and murdered in deserted areas.

Senior superintendent of police, Meerut, Dipesh Juneja told Times Of India that a gang member was arrested during a probe into the murder of a medical representative Rajiv Kumar and a junior engineer of the hydel department on February 14.

The two were apparently robbed and killed, and their bodies were dumped on the outskirts of the city. Tracking Rajiv's cellphone, police intercepted one Salim of Bahraich and recovered photos of the Mahendra Max (UP 41 T 2413) which was used in the crime.

Following sustained interrogation, Salim revealed how a group of taxi drivers from Bahraich stepped into the world of crime killing passengers and robbing them.

"Salim also revealed that they were detained by the police a couple of times earlier but managed to slip away after greasing their palms," admitted a senior officer associated with the investigations.

Police sources quoting Salim said the gang was led by a man named Ali Ahmad, also of Bahraich, who now carries a cash reward of Rs 10,000 on his head.

The man had been arrested by police in Bara Banki earlier, but had escaped from custody. Salim said Ali Ahmad and he were taxi drivers who used to take vehicles on hire and use them for outstation trips.

It was during one of these trips that they overheard some cops discussing how anyone can commit a murder in one district, pass on to another district or even the state, without being caught.

Ali Ahmad, Salim told Meerut police, has around 35 members in his gang who operate in batches of 6 to 7 members.

"They strike at one go. If they strike in Lucknow, they will reach Kanpur and look for another target. After murdering him on the highway, the gang would stop in the next district for a fresh target. This not only kept them on the move but also helped them evade suspicion," said SSP Meerut Dipesh Juneja.

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