Investigators said Harsh (goes by single name) alias Chintu had fled Delhi after committing a double murder in February, and was extorting businessmen in the Capital by claiming that he was a member of the Jitender Mann “Gogi” gang.

Sharing details, police said on February 9, two men were shot at point-blank range inside a salon in Najafgarh. Special commissioner of police (crime) Devesh Chandra Srivastava said investigators identified the assailants as Harsh and Sanjeev Dahiya.

Police said the two assailants managed to flee Delhi, and then the trail went cold for a few months, till August, when investigators probing extortion cases discovered that some Delhi-based businessmen were getting threat calls from Azerbaijan.

Probing this lead, police said, a team led by deputy commissioner of police (crime) Sanjay Sain, assistant commissioner of police (crime) Umesh Barthwal and inspector Rakesh Kumar found that Harsh was hiding in Azerbaijan.

Additional commissioner of police (crime) Sanjay Bhatia said Harsh left India from the Amritsar airport on a fake passport, flying first to Sharjah, before heading to Azerbaijan.

By October, officers said, police had contacted Interpol to issue a Red Corner notice against him.

An investigator probing the case said, “Harsh stayed in Azerbaijan for three months. He also spent some time in Kazakhstan. However, when his visa was about to expire, he travelled to Moldova — where he was refused a visa — and was sent to Istanbul, Turkey from where he was sent back to India. Upon his arrival at IGI, he was arrested.”

Police said Harsh’s interrogation revealed that his stay abroad was financed by fugitive gangster Monty Mann, suspected to be hiding in California. They said the gangster also stated that his accomplice, Dahiya, is currently living in Austria.