Deputy Commissioner of Police M H Gavit (zone IX) informed that a special squad had been set up to nab the gangsters involved in the shootout, and investigations pointed to the involvement of slain underworld don Amar Naik's former hitman Jairam Gawda, alias Company.

Acting on a tip-off, the squad stormed Gawda's residence at Marol in Andheri on Wednesday night and arrested the gangster. He has been remanded to seven days police custody. Separate teams have also been despatched to track down three of Gawda's associates, who were also involved in the firing.

Gawda has been named in over a dozen reported and unreported crimes, including murder, kidnapping and extortions, said the police. Various cases have been registered against him at different police stations, including Azad Maidan, RAK Marg, Byculla, Mahim and Tardeo.

The Mayekarbrothers had received several threatening calls from the Ashwin Naik gang demanding Rs 50 lakh as extortion. They never reported the matter to the police, and the facts came to light after the shootout.