Following a tip off from their Mumbai counterparts, the crime branch launched a night-long operation to nab the gangsters. According to senior police officials, the gangsters were in town to kidnap a prominent businessman.

Two firearms, a 9 mm automatic pistol and a .38 revolver of American make revolver, 30 live cartridges and a mobile phone with a Mumbai SIM card have been recovered from them. The fiat car they were travelling by has been impounded. The car bears a Mumbai registration number.

Of the three arrested, Moin Waziruddin Qureshi (34) was the point man in Pune who has a long history of crime registered against him. Qureshi had recently joined the Chhota Shakeel gang. Accused of murder, dacoities, rioting and other offence, Qureshi has five cases pending against him. According to the police, Qureshi who resides at Wanowrie bazaar is the prize catch in this bust.

Of Qureshi's two accomplices, Afsar Abdul Hussain Attapalli (19) is a new comer into the underworld and also hails from Pune. According to the police, he was picked up because he was known for his driving skills. A resident of Tadiwala Road, Attapalli was supposed to drive the team during the ``hit.''

Mehmood Shaikh Dawood Lal (34) is old hand at such operations. A memeber of the Shakeel gang in Mumbai he was the additional hit man along with Qureshi, the police said. DCP (crime) Surinder Kumar's team received a tip off on Wednesday night. A team led by assistant police inspector (API) S R Kulkarni travelling in three cars raided a few places before homing in on the trio.

The team tracked them near the Poonam petrol pump on the Pune-Mumbai bypass. Following a short chase, the police team managed to intercept the fugitives. Qureshi took out his pistol but was nabbed before he could fire a round.The entire operation is a follow up of the arrests of Riazuddin Patel and Allahuddin Qureshi after a tip off from the Lucknow police two months back.