PRAYAGRAJ, Jan. 30 -- Two men accused in a series of robbery incidents were arrested following a police encounter in Prayagraj on Wednesday, while two of their accomplices managed to escape. The operation was carried out jointly by the Karachhana police station team and the trans-Yamuna unit of the Special Operations Group (SOG) of Prayagraj police. Police recovered stolen jewellery, a pistol, a country-made firearm along with cartridges, and two motorcycles from the arrested accused, officials said. The police had been searching for the criminals involved in the shooting and robbery of jeweller Chandan Soni near the Majhua Canal in the Karachhana area late on December 22, 2025. They were also wanted in connection with the robbery of a scooter, silver ornaments and cash from Kavita Vishwakarma near Tevariya Pulia in recent weeks, officials added. Acting on a tip-off, the police traced the accused on the Mungari-Panasa road in the Karachhana area, informed ACP (Karachhana) Sunil Kumar Singh. During a late-evening encounter, two accused-Pappu Sonkar and Arvind Sonkar, both residents of Sohbatiyabagh in Georgetown-were arrested after sustaining bullet injuries. They were later admitted to hospital for treatment, he added. Meanwhile, their accomplices, Umesh Kol of Koodi village under Bara police station limits and Vivek Sonkar of Sohbatiyabagh Jhuggi Patti, managed to flee. Police teams have launched raids to apprehend them, the ACP said. According to police, the accused opened fire when they were surrounded, prompting retaliatory firing in self-defence, during which the two arrested men were injured. Station house officer of Karachhana police station, Anoop Saroj, led the chase from the Harrai and Bendo border areas along with his team. On receiving information, SOG (trans-Yamuna) in-charge Naveen Kumar Singh also reached the spot with his team. Police records show that arrested accused Pappu Sonkar and absconding accused Umesh Kol have around 15 criminal cases registered against them at Colonelganj, Shivkuti, and Georgetown police stations in Prayagraj....