A special squad of the Crime Branch laid a trap for Khan at Bhandup as he was allegedly going to meet and supply arms to Shakeel associates there. The weapons were to be used to assasinate prominent persons in the city, police say. The names on Khan's hitlist have been withheld for security purposes, according to a senior Crime Branch officer.

Khan alias Mummi Bhai was shot dead on Lal Bahadur Shastri Marg, where he had arrived at around 12.20 am. Police recovered a foreign revolver, two country-made revolvers, and 24 live rounds from Khan.

Investigations reveal that Khan had been supplying arms for various killings in the city for the last three years. Some of these weapons were returned to him after the killings.

Khan is the third Shakeel associate killed in a police encounter in the last fortnight. Mohammed Sheikh alias Nikko was shot deadby the same squad at Tardeo on July 21 and Salim Memon alias Mohammed Shaitan was killed in Bandra (E) on July 23.

Police sources claim that the majority of Karachi-based Shakeel's men have sought haven in Ahmedabad and other cities in Gujarat. Some of them, according to the police, have fled to remote villages in north Uttar Pradesh.