Notorious criminal Manoj Pun has died in a police encounter in Dedaha Municipality of Rupandehi district.

Police said Pun opened fire and made an attempt to escape when the police team tried to arrest him at Bhawanipur in the district on Wednesday. Pun’s aide Som Bahadur Ale, also believed to be Pun’s shooter, also died in the encounter. Both the bodies have been kept at Lumbini Zonal Hospital for autopsy.

Rupandehi SP Shyam Gyawali said police were looking for Pun’s whereabouts after a report of by Central Bureau of Investigation (CIB) stated Pun was hiding in Nepal and planning for another crime. Police have claimed they found him while they were holding a meeting to plan out their next crime when the police team came head-to-head with the gangster. Pun was injured in the shootout that ensued afterwards and later died at Lumbini Zonal Hospital where he was brought for treatment.

Police have recovered pistols from the scene.

Pun, 30, was the main mastermind behind the murder of youth leader Durga Tiwari, construction entrepreneur Sharat Kumar Gauchan and trader Basanta Poudel.