A music producer and rapper from Rohtak, Deepak Nandal worked with several prominent names in the regional music industry, including rappers Rahul Fazilpuria and Badshah, delivering several chartbusters.GURGAON: Till a few years ago, Deepak Nandal's name would regularly appear on public platforms. In music credits. Then, it moved to police files.A music producer and rapper from Rohtak, Nandal worked with several prominent names in the regional music industry, including rappers Rahul Fazilpuria and Badshah, delivering several chartbusters.Today, Nandal is wanted in more than a dozen criminal cases and has a red-corner notice (issued in Oct 2025 against him), making him one of Haryana's most wanted gangsters, the man behind a series of recent shootings, extortion attempts and contract attacks targeting businessmen, former associates and members of the music industry.Investigators suspect his network has expanded beyond conventional organised crime, with links to operatives involved in cross-border arms smuggling.Sources said Nandal initially operated as an aide of the notorious Himanshu Bhau before branching out to establish his own criminal network.His syndicate has operatives spread across Haryana, maintaining ties with criminals in the Sonipat-Rohtak belt. It's from here that the five shooters sent to target a Gurgaon businessman were drawn."Nandal was initially an event manager but he joined hands with businessman Inderjit Singh Yadav. Inderjit owns Gem Records Entertainment, which operates under the name Gems Tunes. Inderjit, who is also a financier, asked Nandal and another gangster, Sunil Sardhania, to handle his finance in Mumbai. Nandal's name emerged in the murder case of Dheegal-based financier Manjeet in 2024. After this, he entered the crime world," a police officer said.Nandal's criminal trajectoryNandal has been conspicuously active in Gurgaon since his relationship with Fazilpuria deteriorated over an alleged financial dispute. Police said Nandal accused the singer of owing him Rs 5 crore from their earlier business dealings.Nandal's hand was suspected in a case of firing on Fazilpuria's car on Southern Peripheral Road last year.Sources said his alleged association with fugitive gangster Satta Naushera, a close aide of designated terrorist Lakhbir Singh Landa, is also under scanner.According to Haryana police, Naushera operates an illegal arms supply network that allegedly smuggles sophisticated weapons, including Glock pistols, from Pakistan into India before distributing them to gang members across Punjab and Haryana.Police are investigating if Naushera helped Nandal procure the weapons that were used by the gang and facilitated the supply chain for firearms.Sources said Nandal fled to Dubai after the initial cases against him and shifted base to Portugal for some time and then to the UK, where he is suspected to be operating from while directing his network through associates in India.His growing criminal profile led investigating agencies to seek international assistance, culminating in the issuance of the Interpol notice.For investigators, Nandal's story is one of a most unusual transformation in the state's recent criminal landscape - a rapper and music producer who traded recording studios for organised crime, built an independent gang after breaking away from a syndicate, and is now suspected of leveraging cross-border arms suppliers to expand his operations.Earlier this month, Delhi-based singer Mohammad Asif received threat calls from Nandal, who allegedly demanded Rs 5 crore.The threats began with a call to the singer's manager and then to the singer himself, who received a voice note from an international number, warning him to "talk sense" into his manager or face violent consequences, including gunfire at his shows. Delhi Police registered an FIR against Nandal.