Gurugram hotel murder: Cops recover weapon used to kill Divya Pahuja

Gurugram, Jan 17 (IANS) The police have recovered the weapon that was allegedly used to kill Divya Pahuja -- a former Gurugram-based model and girlfriend of slain gangster Sandeep Gadoli -- 15 days after she was shot dead at a hotel here.

Divya, 27, was shot dead by Abhijeet Singh, the owner of Hotel City Point where she was staying. According to the police, Divya and Abhijeet were in a relationship. He shot her dead on January 2 in a fit of rage after she refused to delete some of his objectionable photographs from her mobile phone.

A police officer said that the weapon used to kill Divya was recovered following a search conducted by a police team along with Gurugram civic body workers.

The police recovered a pistol along with a live cartridge in bushes near Palam Vihar Mod on the Old Delhi Road.

"The weapon was recovered on the instance of prime accused Abhijeet Singh. He was accompanying the police during the search operation," Varun Dahiya, ACP (crime) said.

Meanwhile, Abhijeet Singh was sent to judicial custody after the completion of his eight-day police remand on Wednesday.

Divya's body was recovered on January 13 -- eleven days after she was shot dead, and was cremated on January 14 by her family members.

The body was recovered from a canal in Tohana in Haryana's Fatehabad district on January 13.

An accused in case Balraj Gill, who was also arrested, had told the police that he and Ravi Banga had thrown Divya's body in the Bakhra Canal in Patiala.

Five teams of Gurugram Police were involved in tracking Balraj and Amit who had absconded along with Divya's body since January 2. Divya's body was identified by a tattoo on her back.

Also, a clue regarding the whereabouts of the body was received after the arrest of Balraj Gill.

In connection with Divya's murder, the police have so far arrested six persons including the prime accused, Abhijeet Singh, his aides Om Prakash, Hemraj, Balraj Gill, Parvesh, and a woman, Megha.

The woman had helped Abhijeet in hiding documents and personal belongings of Divya.

Om Prakash and Hemraj had helped Abhijeet to drag Divya's body into the boot of a BMW car.

Parvesh had supplied the 'murder weapon' to Abhijeet.

Divya came in contact with Abhijeet through a jailed gangster, Binder Gujjar.

Binder Gujjar is said to be the prime conspirator in the alleged "fake encounter" of gangster Sandeep Gadoli, along with the Gurugram Police, which took place in Mumbai in 2016.

Divya was the prime accused in the case.

Later, she was arrested in connection with the gangster's murder, and she spent seven years in jail.

She was granted bail last year in June by the Bombay High Court.

Divya's family has alleged that her murder was conspired by Sandeep Gadoli's family members, along with Abhijeet.