UP: Lawyer's plan to murder girlfriend's family goes wrong as hitmen end up killing wrong person

Police said the lawyer's plan was to kill the woman's husband and father, as the woman was in an alleged relationship with him.

Uttar Pradesh police have found that the murder of a taxi driver in Lucknow on December 30 was a case of “mistaken” identity as the hitmen gang reportedly hired by a lawyer to kill a woman's family ended up killing the wrong ‘target’.

Lucknow police have arrested three persons, including lawyer Aaftab Ahmed, in connection with the murder.(Representational image)(HT File)

Lucknow police have arrested three persons, including lawyer Aaftab Ahmed, in connection with the murder, according to an India Today report.

Initial investigations revealed that Ahmed hired a gang of hitmen to eliminate a woman's family members. However, the killers ended up killing the taxi driver Mohammad Rizwan on December 30 in the Madehganj area.

Why lawyer wanted to kill

Police established the lawyer as the main accused and said the plan was to kill the woman's family members. He had hired the gang to eliminate her husband and father, as the woman was in an alleged relationship with him.

“The accused reached Madehganj on December 30 to carry out the murder but ended up killing the wrong person. The weapon, bike used in the crime, and the phones of the accused have been seized,” the report quoted Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) Raveena Tyagi as saying.

When contacted by the lawyer, the gang member contacted Yasir to kill their ‘targets’. Yasir then hired Krishnakant to execute the plan. In a mix-up, the duo shot dead the wrong person, leading to friction between them and Aftab.

Aftab paid the gang an advance of ₹2 lakh. He then refused to pay the remaining amount because their plans had gone haywire.

Police also recovered an illegal firearm, 14 live cartridges, a motorcycle allegedly used in the crime, and three mobile phones. DCP Tyagi said the accused would be presented in court.

In an unrelated incident, a man from Agra who allegedly killed his mother and four sisters in a hotel room in Lucknow was sent to judicial custody on Thursday while police said efforts are on to arrest his father.

Lucknow police continue to search for a man who hatched a conspiracy with his son and killed his wife and four daughters inside a hotel room in the city. His son is currently under judicial custody on January 2.

“We have formed four teams to search and arrest the father, Mohammad Badr. The main accused Mohammad Arshad in his video confession claimed that his father was also involved in the murders. Arshad has been sent to judicial custody,” (DCP) Tyagi had said.