Tiger Shroff Firing: Suspects Fled to Surat, Held on Train to Delhi, Say Police
Shots were fired at a car carrying Bollywood actor Tiger Shroff in Mumbai's Juhu area on Sunday night as he was leaving a football club, setting off a manhunt that ended with three suspects being detained in Rajasthan's Kota, police said.
According to police accounts, the actor was being driven away and was waving to fans through the rolled-up windows of his vehicle when the firing began. Video footage described by investigators shows one man standing in front of the car, holding a firearm with both hands, and another man wearing a cap firing from the side. A man on a motorcycle was waiting nearby, and the group fled on it after the attack.
Police said the actor was not injured, while his driver and the driver of an autorickshaw were hurt. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, who visited the actor late on Sunday night, gave a different account, saying he had suffered injuries to his left hand from gunpowder and glass fragments. The discrepancy in the two statements has not been explained.
Investigators pieced together the suspects' movements through a series of CCTV recordings. The men are believed to have abandoned their motorcycle near Andheri West railway station and boarded a train towards Borivali. They are then alleged to have travelled to Surat by road in a Maharashtra-registered taxi.
One recording shows the suspects entering Surat Railway Station through an exit gate at about 1.31 am. Another shows men running down a platform and leaping into a general coach of a train that was already moving. Police sources said the footage establishes their route from the road to the station, and that they boarded a train from there.
The three were intercepted later in Kota while travelling on the Pune-Jaipur Express, police said. Kota Superintendent of Police Tejaswani Gautam told reporters that the information was received around 9.45 am and that exit points and platforms were covered to make the arrest. "Preliminary questioning revealed that they intended to travel to Delhi by this train and then escape to Nepal from there," she said. A Mumbai Police team has since reached Kota to take custody of the accused.
According to police sources, the three received Rs 50,000 collectively as an advance for carrying out the attack. Investigators are questioning them to establish what each person's role was and whether all three took part directly in the firing.
Sources said the suspects were communicating through the Signal and Telegram messaging applications, and that their locations were being shared between them. The firearm used in the attack has not yet been recovered. The accused were travelling in a general compartment when they were detained.
A post circulating on social media claims that the Lawrence Bishnoi gang has taken responsibility for the attack. Police have said they have not verified the authenticity of the claim and have not confirmed any link.
Shinde, addressing the incident, warned that his government would not tolerate gang activity in Mumbai. "Bullets would be answered with bullets," he said.
Tiger Shroff, the son of the 1980s star Jackie Shroff, is known for his action and dance roles in Hindi cinema. The investigation is continuing, with the Mumbai Police yet to file details of the case in court and several questions — including the motive and the identity of those who may have commissioned the attack — still unanswered.
