Sanjeev Mukhiya, the prime accused in the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (UG) paper leak case, was arrested by the Economic Offences Unit (EOU) team in Patna, officials said on Friday.

The EOU team apprehended Mukhiya on Thursday, according to Naiyar Hussain Khan, Additional Director General of the Bihar Economic Offences Unit.

On April 9, the Bihar Police announced a reward of ₹3 lakh for any information that would lead to the arrest of Mukhiya

In October last year, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) filed a chargesheet in the NEET paper leak case before the Special CBI Court in Patna.

The investigation revealed that the NEET UG 2024 question paper was stolen from the control room of OASIS School in Hazaribagh on May 5, after the trunks containing the papers arrived from the bank vault.

According to the CBI, Pankaj Kumar, the other accused, was granted unauthorized access to the control room by the school’s Principal, Ahsanul Haque, and Vice Principal, Imtiyaz Alam.

The solved question paper was then distributed to candidates gathered at a guest house in Hazaribagh. It was also scanned and sent digitally to predetermined locations where members of the gang received it.

Only those who had paid in advance were allowed to enter these locations. After their sessions, candidates were not permitted to take any printed copies with them.

The CBI later recovered half-burnt pieces of the question paper at Learn Play School in Patna, which led investigators to OASIS School, the agency added in its statement.