UP: For 12 cartons of smartphone screens, 5 friends kill trucker

BIJNOR: Sixteen days after a body with throat slit was found in Amroha district, five Budaun-based friends of the slain trucker, who used to work on contract for a mobile phone manufacturing company in Noida, were arrested and sent to prison, police said on Wednesday.
Divulging the details of the case, Amroha SP Vineet Jaiswal said, "Nempal Singh (40) used to transport expensive goods to various parts of the country.On April 16, he picked a consignment of mobile phone screens worth Rs 35 lakh from his Noida firm and was supposed to drop the 12 cartons to various service outlets in the city and its outskirts. His friends also accompanied him on the truck. However, as he started to drive, they lured him to a drink and spiked it."
The SP added, "Once he fell unconscious, they shifted the expensive goods to another vehicle and took him along. Leaving the truck behind, the accused drove Nempal in their vehicle at night and later killed him with a spade. The trucker's body was found the next morning near Dadhiwala village in Amroha district."
All six men were staying in separate rented homes in Noida, and the five accused have been identified as Vinod Kumar, Vipin Kumar, Dhirendra Singh, Ajendra Singh and Pramod Kumar, police said.
Locals spotted the body near a village tubewell and informed the cops. Police found a driving licence in the victim's pocket and identified him. Soon, they contacted his family members and constituted two teams to crack the case.
"After an initial investigation, the cops managed to get to the accused with the help of CCTV footage and other surveillance systems. All the accused have been booked for murder," the SP said.