PATNA, Jan. 23 -- A key member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, Parmanand Yadav (23), was injured during a police encounter on NH-22 under Masaurhi police station in Patna on Thursday morning. He was admitted to PMCH for treatment. Yadav sustained a gunshot wound to the leg during an exchange of fire, a police officer said. According to police, information had been received that several criminals had gathered with weapons in the Beur police station area to execute a major crime. A joint team of the Special Task Force (STF) and Patna police conducted a raid, arresting three individuals with illegal firearms. The arrested were identified as Vicky alias Neeraj Kumar (Jehanabad), Chandan (Jehanabad), and Shivam Anand (Lakhisarai). One suspect escaped under the cover of darkness. Recovered items included a revolver, six live cartridges, a passport, Nepali currency, Rs.40,000 in cash, and four mobile phones. During interrogation, the police learned that the fugitive was Parmanand Yadav, a notorious criminal from Latehar district, Jharkhand, and a key member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang. The STF and Patna police tracked Yadav to Masaurhi, cordoned off the area, and ordered him to surrender. However, he opened fire on the officers. In self-defence, police returned fire, injuring Yadav, said DG (Operations) Kundan Krishnan. The DG added that a 9mm pistol, two cartridges, two mobile phones, an Aadhaar card, and a PAN card were recovered from Yadav, who is associated with Maoist organisations in Jharkhand. He faces more than 15 serious criminal cases in Gumla, Latehar, and other districts of Jharkhand. An STF officer said Yadav maintained contacts with Rahul Singh of the Aman Sahu gang and had travelled to Malaysia on December 11, 2025, to meet his associates. "During interrogation, Yadav revealed links between Badal Singh (Palamau, Jharkhand), Rahul Dubey, and Rahul Singh, who used audio and video calls to intimidate contractors and businessmen in Bihar and Jharkhand to extract extortion," the officer said. Following extortion demands from Rohtas-based contractor Ajay Kumar, cases were registered on November 28 and December 2, 2025. On December 2, 2025, the Bishnoi group (Arzoo Bishnoi faction) allegedly demanded Rs.5 crore from Mukesh Kumar, HR Head of Varun Beverages Limited, Buxar, leading to a case at Basudeva police station (Buxar). The STF officer added that coordination with Jharkhand police was ongoing and raids were being conducted to apprehend other suspects linked to these crimes....