Police have intensified the search for Shubham Lonkaran alleged member of the dreaded Lawrence Bishnoi gang that once operated from Pune.
On January 27, a First Information Report (FIR) was lodged against Shubham at Sant Tukaram Nagar police station in Pimpri Chinchwad for allegedly making extortion calls to film businessman and financier Sunny Waghchoure, 37.
Then his name arose in relation to the Shot in front of Bollywood film director Rohit Shetty’s house in BombayJuhu around 12:45 a.m. on February 1. Within an hour, a message appeared on a Facebook page with the name ‘Shubham Lonkar Aarzoo Bishnoi’ claiming responsibility for the attack. Mumbai Police have arrested five men from Pune in this case and are investigating his links with Shubham, who is also a wanted accused in the Baba Siddique murder case.
The murder of Baba Siddique
Leader of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) Baba Siddique, 66, was shot dead in Mumbai on October 12, 2024, following which Shubham allegedly published a Facebook post in Hindi claiming that the former MLA was killed over his previous links with Dawood Ibrahim and the death of Anuj Thappan. Thappan had allegedly died in police custody after being arrested for shooting at actor Salman Khan’s house in Bandra West on April 14, 2024.
Although the post published after Siddique’s death was deleted within minutes, its screenshot went viral. The police then zeroed in on Shubham and arrested his brother Pravin Lonkar from Warje area in Pune in October 2024. Since then, Shubham had been on the run. A team of Mumbai Police visited Pune to “check” on him after the attack on Salman Khan’s house, allegedly by the Bishnoi gang. However, Shubham was not charged in this case. Also, no offense had been filed against Shubham before the Pune police till then.
Threatening call to businessman Sunny Waghchoure
However, on the night of January 25, 2026, a man who identified himself as Shubham Lonkar called scrap metal businessman Sunny Waghchoure from Pimpri via WhatsApp using what appeared to be an international number.
Shubham allegedly asked Waghchoure to Google him. The next day, he is said to have sent a WhatsApp message to Waghchoure from another international number demanding Rs 5 million and warning that he would be killed like Baba Siddique if the money was not paid.
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The threat message read: “…tera Baba Siddique jaisa haal karenge. Tu jitna sona pehenta hai us se dogna jyada pital bhar denge yaad rakhna #Arzoo Bishnoi… (They will kill you like Baba Siddiqui. Remember, you wear gold, but we will put twice as much brass (bullets) in your body…).”
Shubham Lonkar and his brother Pravin founded Lonkar Dairy at Bhalekar Wasti in Warje in 2022 while residing in a rented apartment nearby. (Express Photo)
Waghchoure, whose Instagram account has around 25 million followers, became famous after appearing at various social and commercial events wearing around 3kg of gold jewellery. He also acted in the Bollywood film Zila Gaziabad and appeared in Kapil Sharma’s comedy show as well as The Khatra Khatra Show on television. He joined the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) on January 6, in the presence of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, who died in a plane crash in Baramati on January 28.
Based on Waghchoure’s complaint, the police arrested Shubham Lonkar under section 308 (5) (extortion) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). The investigation was handed over to the Crime Unit of Pimpri Chinchwad police. Police suspect that the accused, who claims to be Shubham Lonkar, may have used a virtual private network (VPN) to contact Waghchoure using international numbers.
2024 arrest in firearms case
Police said Shubham is a native of Nevari village in Akola district of Maharashtra. Along with his brother Pravin, he was arrested in a firearms recovery case by the Akola police in 2024. They were later released on bail. A police investigation then revealed Shubham’s communication with members of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang through WhatsApp audio and video calls.
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Police said Shubham, now around 32, wanted to join the Indian Army and had participated in National Cadet Corps (NCC) activities in the past. Investigators believe he had been in Rajasthan for an NCC event when he came into contact with men linked to the Bishnoi gang and gradually became an active member of the syndicate around 2018-2019.
During this period, Shubham left Akot with Pravin and settled in Pune. They founded Lonkar Dairy at Bhalekar Wasti in Warje in 2022 while residing in a rented apartment nearby. The dairy, mainly run by Pravin, remained open until a few days before his arrest in the Baba Siddique murder case.
Investigators said some of the shooters in the Baba Siddique case were known to be working at the Balaji Scrap Center, located next to Lonkar Dairy. Police suspect that while operating from Pune, Shubham allegedly gathered men to work for the Bishnoi gang.
Officers are investigating whether Shubham has been in direct contact with Bishnoi, who is currently staying at AhmedabadSabarmati central jail. They suspect that Shubham received WhatsApp calls from Lawrence’s brother Anmol, who was deported from the United States in November last year and is now in Tihar jail. A senior officer of Pimpri Chinchwad police said efforts are on to trace Shubam’s location.
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Earlier, some men from Pune who were allegedly working for the Bishnoi gang were also arrested in connection with the murder of the Punjabi singer. Sidhu Moosewala in 2022.