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Kingpin of ‘Irani gang’ targeting senior citizens in Chandigarh held
The Irani gang members are from Irani colony in Madhya Pradesh; targeted senior citizens and robbed them of their jewellery by posing as cops
The police arrested the kingpin of the “Irani gang” that targeted senior citizens and robbed them of their jewellery by posing as cops.
The accused arrested is identified as Sultan Khan (46) from Irani Colony, Sendhwa, Barwani, Madhya Pardesh. He was arrested on Saturday on a tip-off about the movement of the ‘Irani gang’ near the lake in Sector 42, Chandigarh.
With his arrest, police have solved four cases reported in the city. Police has recovered a motorcycle with fake number plate involved in the crime, one fake identity card of CBI, one country made pistol along with four live cartridges, cap, mask and bag used by accused in the crime.
The accused in his preliminary questioning told the police that he operated with different names -- Sultan Khan alias Amjad Ali alias Gabbar Ali alias Bhuru.
“He is a member of the notorious interstate cheats/robbers of ‘Irani gang’ involved/wanted in several cases of cheating/robbery in Chandigarh, Haryana, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Delhi and the NCR. They are a well-organised gang,” said Kanwardeep Kaur, senior superintendent of police (SSP), Chandigarh.
She said, “The recent incidents of robberies in Chandigarh indicated a pattern of committing crime by a gang posing themselves as cops. A special team was constituted who worked for 2 months and analysed the CCTV footage and identified them as members of ‘Irani gang’.
Talking of modus operandi, the SSP added, “Two members impersonating as cops targetted senior citizens. They would ask them to take off their jewellery else they can fall prey to snatchings. They would then pack the jewellery in a paper packet and instead of returning the real jewellery, they would hand over fake jewellery in a similar packet to the victim. During the same time, another gang member will come pretending to be a passerby and will hand over his belongings to the impersonator so as to gain confidence of the victim”.
She said, “Another gang member who will be stationed some meters away will keep a watch while another member would wait with a car or a bike to flee away with the booty.”
The gang operated from Agra. The SSP said, “They would target few persons and soon after the crime leave the state. They would stay at high-profile hotels to dodge police. They would be covering their faces with cap of mask to avoid being identified.” The SSP said, “The Irani gang derived its name as about 400 years ago, one family came to India from Iran and settled here in Irani colony in Madhya Pradesh. This gang operates all over India. There are about 350 families of Irani gang in India and about 500 youngsters are active in this gang.”
She added, “The gang operates in different cities and works in small teams of 4-5 members.”