Two men who provided housekeeping services to Reliance Jewels, Chandigarh, were behind the attempted robbery at the brand’s showroom in Manimajra, in the early hours of Monday, police said while revealing that the duo has been arrested.
The arrests came within 18 hours of the incident.
The accused have been identified as Himanshu alias Sahil, 32, of Ambala Cantonment, the proprietor of a housekeeping firm named Sahil Enterprises, and his aide Sunny, 31, of Yamunanagar.
The duo had allegedly picked up robbery techniques through social media and turned up at the spot with an electric cutter and other tools. But quick-thinking by a guard deployed outside the showroom foiled their bid.
As per the guard, Surendra Kumar, two men, wearing raincoats and masks, had walked up to the store at 2.45 am and held him at knifepoint. Threatening him to stay silent, the men started to break the lock of the shutter. It was then that the guard screamed for help following which the other guards deployed in the market rushed in. Seeing them, the robbers had no option but to flee.
Given the sensitivity of the case, three special police teams were constituted under the supervision of senior officers. Investigators simultaneously scrutinised CCTV footage from Chandigarh, Panchkula, and Mohali, verified the backgrounds of Reliance Jewels’ staff and contractors, and checked records of known offenders. Their efforts pointed towards Ambala Cantonment, from where they first nabbed Himanshu alias Sahil. His Honda Amaze car (HR01AR2642), allegedly used in the crime, was also seized from his possession. Based on his disclosure, police arrested his associate Sunny.
{{/usCountry}}Given the sensitivity of the case, three special police teams were constituted under the supervision of senior officers. Investigators simultaneously scrutinised CCTV footage from Chandigarh, Panchkula, and Mohali, verified the backgrounds of Reliance Jewels’ staff and contractors, and checked records of known offenders. Their efforts pointed towards Ambala Cantonment, from where they first nabbed Himanshu alias Sahil. His Honda Amaze car (HR01AR2642), allegedly used in the crime, was also seized from his possession. Based on his disclosure, police arrested his associate Sunny.
{{/usCountry}}During interrogation, they revealed that they had knowledge about the showroom premises as they had previously provided facility management services to Reliance Jewels in Chandigarh.
The accused also told police that they were under financial stress due to loans and household liabilities and thus turned to crime.
Police have recovered a bag, raincoats, face masks, gloves, a rope, hammer, kulhadi (axe), knife, and a lock from the accused in addition to the vehicle.
The duo were produced in court on Tuesday, where police sought remand for further investigation into their criminal activities and possible links with other cases. Police said verification of staff in sensitive establishments like jewellery showrooms will be further strengthened to prevent similar incidents.