E-Paper
Chandigarh: HR executive-turned-snatcher held; committed over a dozen crimes
The accused, identified as Abhishek Ojha, a native of Agra residing in Panchkula’s Sector 7, had allegedly turned to crime after watching YouTube videos on snatchings. His associate, a courier company employee who received and hid the stolen jewellery in Agra, has also been arrested.
Chandigarh: A 30-year-old BCA graduate and former HR executive of a multinational company in Mohali, was arrested by the Chandigarh Police for his involvement in over a dozen snatching incidents across the UT, Mohali, and Panchkula.
The accused, identified as Abhishek Ojha, a native of Agra residing in Panchkula’s Sector 7, had allegedly turned to crime after watching YouTube videos on snatchings. His associate, a courier company employee who received and hid the stolen jewellery in Agra, has also been arrested.
Ojha was arrested on August 1 by a team from the Sector 31 police station. The cops subsequently recovered five gold chains, a gold mangalsutra, and two gold pendants, apart from the motorcycle and weapon used in the crime, from the accused.
‘Was obsessed with crime videos’
According to police, Ojha was obsessed with online games and crime videos. In one of his online searches, he came across clips showing how to snatch jewellery in residential areas. What began as curiosity soon turned into crime. He committed three snatching offences in Agra before relocating to the Tricity in March 2025 and taking up a job in Mohali.
Within a few months, he turned into a serial offender, targeting women across Sectors 31, 34, 36, 39, 19 in Chandigarh, as well as Mohali and Panchkula. To evade detection, he used a Bajaj Pulsar N-250 motorcycle with its number plate removed. He committed the crimes alone and later sent the stolen jewellery to his friend Ashok Kumar, 28, in Agra via courier.
After committing the crimes, he would escape to Mohali or Panchkula, halt at a pre-decided secret spot, and reattach the number plate. At home, he would pretend to be on a night shift, while in reality, he would carry out snatchings between 8:30 pm and 10 pm. To nab him, UT Police formed a dedicated team of nine policemen, all in civil dress, and the entire operation was conducted covertly to ensure zero suspicion.
Mangalsutra snatching led to arrest
His arrest came following a snatching incident on July 23, when a woman named Preeti, a resident of Sector 31, was returning home around 8:30 pm. A bike rider suddenly snatched her mangalsutra near the AFFWA Complex and fled.
During his arrest, a knife (kamanidar) was recovered from Ojha. He later confessed to multiple snatching incidents and revealed that the stolen items were stored at his friend’s house in Agra and Aligarh.
During his five-day police remand, the team conducted raids in Agra and arrested Kumar, who admitted to receiving the stolen items through DTDC courier. The mangalsutra snatched from Preeti was recovered from Kumar. On August 4, further raids in Panchkula led to the recovery of three more gold chains, two gold pendants, and a number plate. The DTDC courier slip was also seized as evidence.
Ojha has three cases registered against him at Agra and Kumar, an MSc graduate and an employee at a courier company.
