A leader of a militia launched by Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath two decades ago has been arrested on the charge of robbing and killing a trader and then sending police on a wild goose chase by threatening a movement if the “culprits” were not nabbed.

Kirtiman Gupta, the Bangarmau town president of the Hindu Yuva Vahini, and his friends Vicky Soni and Akshay Singh had gone to the shop of Satish Chandra Gupta on May 12 after a drinking session. Kirtiman shot Satish in the head and the trio made away with Rs 3 lakh in cash and gold rings, said Unnao police chief Anand Kulkarni.

“We traced the location of three mobile phones active near the scene of the May 12 crime. We tracked the cellphones and reached Kirtiman, Vicky and Akshay,” he said.

“Kirtiman had tried to fool us by threatening a movement if the culprits were not arrested soon”, a police source said.

The Hindu Yuva Vahini said it had suspended Kirtiman.