Yogesh is among at least 25 men flagged at Jantar Mantar despite being behind bars for serious offences, police, jail and court records show. (Express FIle Photo by Abhinav Saha)Among the 2,873 people with criminal records flagged by facial recognition software at Jantar Mantar during the students’ protests from July 20 to 26 was an alleged close aide of gangsters Lawrence Bishnoi and Hashim Baba.The Facial Recognition System deployed at Jantar Mantar identified Yogesh, alias Raju, at around 4.24 pm on July 25. However, an investigation found that Yogesh, 27, was lodged in Tihar Jail when the system allegedly identified him.Jail records show that he had been in custody since last year. The records show he was first jailed on November 17, 2024, and again on November 29, 2024.Yogesh is among at least 25 men flagged by the system at Jantar Mantar who were already behind bars for offences including murder, attempted murder, rape and crimes against children, according to police, jail and court records.Gym owner’s murderYogesh, a resident of Badaun in Uttar Pradesh, was arrested in connection with the alleged killing of 34-year-old gym owner Nadir Shah in South Delhi’s Greater Kailash-1 in 2024. Afghan national Shah was shot dead outside his gym in GK-1 on the night of September 12.The police arrested him on October 17, 2024, after a brief early-morning encounter on the Mathura highway in a joint operation by the Delhi Police and Uttar Pradesh Police. The police said he sustained a bullet injury on his left leg during the shootout.“At 4.25 am, an Apache motorcycle entered the Agra-Mathura highway service road. The rider was identified as Yogesh and was asked to stop and surrender. However, he started firing at the police,” a senior police officer had said.Story continues below this adExplained | Why facial recognition is a hit and missThe police said the accused was fired upon in retaliation, leading to an exchange of 11 rounds.“Yogesh fired five rounds at the police, while six rounds were fired in response. He sustained a bullet injury on his left leg. He was taken to the Civil Hospital in Mathura and later arrested,” the officer said.The officer added that they recovered a .32 bore handgun, seven live cartridges, three empty shells and a motorcycle without a number plate from the spot.A habitual offenderYogesh has been named in five FIRs, including four in Uttar Pradesh and the GK-1 murder case in Delhi.Story continues below this adHe was first jailed in 2018 for allegedly stabbing a boy to death in Kasganj, Uttar Pradesh. After being released on bail in 2022, he came to Delhi.“He initially started working with the gang of Cheenu Pehelwan, who was a rival of Hashim Baba. He later left the gang over remuneration issues and joined Baba in 2023,” a police officer said.Also Read | The rise of Hashim Baba – dreaded Delhi gangster and partner of Lawrence BishnoiOfficers said the Bishnoi gang was unhappy with gym owner Shah’s friendship with a Dubai-based businessman.“Shah was in the call centre business with the businessman. Bishnoi had demanded Rs 5 crore from the businessman, following which the latter approached Shah for help. Shah had become a police informant after 2018 and tried to negotiate with Bishnoi,” a police officer aware of the matter said.Story continues below this ad“However, Bishnoi threatened Shah and asked him to stay out of the matter or face consequences. As punishment, the ransom demand was increased from Rs 5 crore to Rs 25 crore,” the officer added.Mahender Singh Manral is an Assistant Editor with the national bureau of The Indian Express. He is known for his impactful and breaking stories. He covers the Ministry of Home Affairs, Investigative Agencies, National Investigative Agency, Central Bureau of Investigation, Law Enforcement Agencies, Paramilitary Forces, and internal security. Prior to this, Manral had extensively reported on city-based crime stories along with that he also covered the anti-corruption branch of the Delhi government for a decade. He is known for his knack for News and a detailed understanding of stories. He also worked with Mail Today as a senior correspondent for eleven months. He has also worked with The Pioneer for two years where he was exclusively covering crime beat. During his initial days of the career he also worked with The Statesman newspaper in the national capital, where he was entrusted with beats like crime, education, and the Delhi Jal Board. A graduate in Mass Communication, Manral is always in search of stories that impact lives. ... Read More