With the arrest of six men, the Delhi Police’s Crime Branch has successfully dismantled an inter-state gang of notorious robbers involved in the heist of Rs 50 lakhs from a couple in Anand Vihar area, an official said on Tuesday.
The arrested suspects have been identified as Mohd Shahzad (45), Saeed alias Kalwa (38), Jameel aka Famu (42), Arshad (36), Lalita Prasad alias Lalta (52), and Shamim (36).
Special Commissioner of Police (Crime) Ravindra Singh Yadav said that on November 28, the complainant, a resident of Markin Ganj, Ghazipur, Uttar Pradesh alleged that at 10.15 a.m, he along with his wife de-boarded a train at Anand Vihar railway station, as they had to go to Chandni Chowk for purchasing gold jewellery for their shop.
After exiting the railway station, an auto-rickshaw driver approached them and agreed to take them to Chandni Chowk.
“They were carrying two bags containing cash of Rs 50 lakhs, so they quickly boarded the auto-rickshaw. After travelling some distance, the driver and one of his associates stopped the auto-rickshaw and informed them that some fault had occurred in the engine, preventing them from going any further,” said Yadav.
Simultaneously, another auto-rickshaw approached them, and the autorickshaw driver of the first auto asked them to sit in the other auto-rickshaw.
As the autorickshaw already had two passengers, the complainant declined to sit. However, both auto-rickshaw drivers placed their bags in the auto-rickshaw. “After covering a certain distance, the driver of the second auto-rickshaw and the three persons who were already in the autorickshaw threatened them, robbed their bags, and disembarked,” said the Special CP.
During the investigation, all relevant CCTV footage of the incident was collected and analysed. “In the scrutiny of these CCTV recordings, one footage surfaced, depicting the victims seated in an auto-rickshaw under the Ghazipur flyover. Following the auto-rickshaw through surveillance cameras, the registration number of the vehicle was identified,” said Yadav.
Upon obtaining the details, it was revealed that the auto-rickshaw was registered in the name of Mahavir. “Information about the said auto-rickshaw was also gathered from the traffic unit, uncovering traffic violation challans registered against the names of Sarfaraz and Aftab,” said Yadav.
Both manual and technical surveillance were deployed on the suspects, and the presence of the accused persons involved in the robbery case was traced to Bijnor, Uttar Pradesh.
The investigative team conducted a raid in Bijnor at the residences of the accused, but all were found absconding from their respective places.
“Upon questioning with the family of one suspect named Shahzad and examining his daughter’s mobile, a mobile number surfaced. Further investigation into the provided mobile number revealed its activation on the day following the offence, with its location traced to Patna, Bihar,” said the Special CP.
A raid was executed in Patna, Bihar, but the mobile number was found switched off. Subsequently, all hotels in the vicinity of the potential location were meticulously searched for customers with Bijnor IDs.
“After checking more than 20 hotels, a guesthouse in Raja Bazaar, Patna, Bihar, revealed that room No. 203 was occupied by four persons from Bijnor,” said Yadav.
The room was found locked, and upon inquiry, a new mobile number was discovered in the guesthouse record. Based on technical analysis, Shahzad, Saeed, Jameel, and Arshad were apprehended.
During sustained interrogation, they confessed to their involvement in a robbery case at Police Station S Anand Vihar, Delhi. A sum of Rs 23,50,000, the robbed cash, was recovered from their possession.
“Further investigations led to the apprehension of accused Prasad from Bijnor. At his disclosure, another accused named Shamim was apprehended, who provided the auto-rickshaw to the accused persons. A sum of Rs 7,96,000, along with both the auto-rickshaws used in the commission of the crime, was recovered from their possession,” said Yadav.
During questioning, the accused revealed their extensive involvement in criminal cases, having been incarcerated multiple times. After their release, facing financial challenges, they all came to Delhi from Bijnor and stayed at the residence of Nafees, their gang operator.
Since November 22, they actively sought a target, regularly visiting railway stations to identify a profitable opportunity. However, success eluded them until November 28 when Prasad identified a target, and they executed their plan in collaboration with Nafees, robbing Rs 50 lakhs from an elderly couple in the Anand Vihar area.
“Post-robbery, they directly proceeded to Nafees’s residence to distribute the stolen loot,” said Yadav.
It was also revealed that Nafees distributed the shares among all gang members, operating the gang and providing logistical support to them.
“All the accused disclosed their involvement in similar modus operandi cases. To evade arrest, they frequently changed their hideouts. Remaining accused persons, named Iqbal, Akbar, and Nafees, are still at large,” Yadav added.
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