A barber, who had killed two small children by slitting their throats on Tuesday evening , was shot dead in a crossfire by police within three hours of the incident in Uttar Pradesh’ s Budaun district.

The accused Sajid, who runs a saloon in Baba colony near Mandi Samiti police outpost, killed Ayush (13) and Ahaan (6), sons of contractor Vinod Thakur by slitting their throats with a knife at 6.30 pm on Tuesday.

Thakur stayed in front of barber’s shop.

Sajid committed the crime along with his two associates. Three hours after the incident, police surrounded the spot about two km away and the accused Sajid was killed in an encounter.

Inspector Gaurav Vishnoi was also injured in the encounter.

Eyewitness said Sajid murdered both the children in a very brutal manner. His hands and the whole body were stained with the blood of children, they said.

Family members of the victims said the accused was well known to the family.

Yesterday, Sajid went into the house and asked the children’s mother Sangeeta to make tea for him and went upstairs.

The mother started making tea and he went to the third floor and killed her two children.

When the third son of the couple ran down screaming, his mother and grandmother reached upstairs where the accused was present on the terrace.

The mother and grandmother were in a bad shape while the third son, who came out from the jaws of death, is still in shock.

Piyush, the third son of contractor Vinod Kumar, is an eyewitness to the murder.

Before the incident, victim’s mother reportedly had given Rs 5000 to Sajid for treatment of his wife.

According to the police, the accused opened fire at the police team first, so they retaliated in self defence.

The accused was killed during the encounter. Inspector Gaurav Bishnoi also received shot during the ensuing crossfire.

The inspector was admitted to the ICU ward as his condition became critical.

Inspector General of Police ( IG) Dr Rakesh Kumar said the accused had run away from the house and the police was chasing him. Dr Kumar said the accused opened fire first and then the police retaliated.

Within three hours of the incident, the accused was killed in the encounter. He was hit by two bullets.

After the crime, an irate mob torched the shop of accused barbe and blocked the road in protest against the incident.