New Delhi, Jun 13 (IANS): A 39-year-old murder convict was arrested after he jumped his parole to work for Delhi's dreaded gangsters, an official said on Monday.

The accused, identified as Pramod Vats, a resident of Dwarka in Delhi, got furlough during the Covid outbreak on March 24, 2020 and was supposed to surrender on February 21. But, he did not and went absconding.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Amit Goel said a tip-off was received that a wanted convict of murder case had come to Palam village to meet some of his contacts and if raid was conducted, he could be apprehended. Subsequently, a police team was constituted which conducted a raid and apprehended the accused from a house of his close contact located in Palam Village at about 4.20 p.m. on Sunday.

Sharing details of the murder committed by Vats in 2011, the senior official said Vats and his two brothers were convicted for murder of one Balwan Solanki in August 2014. All the three brothers were convicted in that case and are serving a life sentence.

During interrogation it was revealed that convict Vats came in contact with some hard core gangsters in jail, including Sunil Mann alias Tillu Tajpuriya, Naveen alias Balli and their associate Sandeep alias Dhillu, who were also lodged in jail in various cases.

"He had developed intimacy with them in jail. Before release on furlough these gangsters had asked him to remain in touch with them from outside and wait for some task," DCP Goel said.

It was learnt that the accused had no source of income, and decided to join their syndicate to earn money and for the said purpose he did not surrender and absconded. "He was impressed by these desperate gangsters, although none of them had contacted him since he came out of jail on furlough," the official added.