A first information report (FIR) was registered on Saturday against four people for allegedly firing shots at the 35-year-old son of late underworld don N Muthappa Rai near his residence in Ramanagara district, police said.
Minister G Parameshwara said he was aware of the incident and sought details from the police. “I was told that the incident happened at 1.30 or 2 am. I have asked for details. He (Ricky) has been admitted to Manipal Hospital and I’m told he is out of danger. Police have begun the investigation at the spot by deploying extra force,” he told reporters.
“According to the complaint, Rikki, his driver G Basavaraju, and bodyguard Rajpal initially left their home in Sadashivanagar at around 6 pm on Friday and arrived at their residence in Kariyappa Nadoddy around 7 pm. They left for Bengaluru at around 12 am,” an officer, who is part of the investigation, said on condition of anonymity.
“While en route, they heard a noise and Rikki, who was seated in the back of the car was seen shot in the nose and right arm. He was rushed to the hospital,” the officer said.
“On the basis of a complaint filed by Basavaraju, we booked four suspects — Muthappa Rai’s close associate Rakesh Malli, Muthappa Rai’s second wife Anuradha, Nitesh Estate owner Nitesh Shetty, real estate agent Vaidyanathan — charges of attempt to murder and arms act,” the officer said, adding that enmity in real estate business is suspected to be the key reason for the attack.
“We have registered an FIR and have continued the investigation. The injured is undergoing treatment at a private hospital, his statement has been collected. We are confident that we will complete the investigation as soon as possible,” Ramanagara superintendent of police, R Srinivas Gowda told reporters.
“As he (Ricky) is under treatment, we will try to get more information from him once he is discharged,” he said. According to the SP, the victim was staying abroad, and had come to attend the court matters related to a private complaint.
“We will investigate this,” he said. Asked whether there was any counter-firing from the victims’ side, the official said, “We have not found any such thing as of now.” Regarding the complaint and FIR, he said the victim has raised suspicion regarding those behind civil cases that are registered against him.
“We need to gather more information in this regard…we have to find out the reason from the investigation,” he said. To a question on any underworld links to the incident, the SP replied no such thing has been found as of now. He clarified that no one has been taken into custody, and all those with the victim and his friends are being interrogated.
CCTV cameras installed in and around the vicinity of the area are being scanned to identify the suspects and ascertain the sequence of events that unfolded, police said. Teams have been formed and efforts are being made to nab the suspects involved in the shootout, they added.
With inputs from PTI