Meerut: A gangrape accused was shot dead in an early morning encounter with police on Monday near the forests in the Sarurpur Police Station area. The accused, identified as Shehzad alias Nikki, was killed after he allegedly opened fire at a police team while trying to escape. He sustained a bullet injury to the chest and was rushed to PL Sharma District Hospital, where doctors declared him dead.
According to Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Vipin Tada, Shehzad, a resident of Bahsuma in Meerut, had seven criminal cases against him, including gangrape, assault, theft, and POCSO Act violations. Police records show that Shehzad, along with an accomplice, had raped a seven-year-old girl earlier this year.
Officials said that around 12:47 am on October 12, Shehzad fired two rounds at the survivor’s house in Bahsuma, threatening her family. Within 30 hours, police traced him near Sarurpur, where he was intercepted around 5:30 am on Monday. When he fired at the police team, they retaliated, fatally wounding him.
A forensic team reached the encounter site to collect evidence, while senior officers and additional personnel cordoned off the area. Shehzad’s body has been sent for postmortem examination.
Police launched a manhunt after the survivor’s family reported the firing incident, with the Special Operations Group (SOG) joining the search overnight.
Shehzad had earlier served jail time in a 2019 scooter theft case and was accused of raping a five-year-old child. Released in January 2025, he allegedly continued targeting minors.
This was the seventh police encounter in Meerut within the last 16 days in which an accused has been killed.