Zirakpur police have arrested four members of a gang that used an e-rickshaw to carry out snatching incidents in the city. The accused would ride in an e-rickshaw to deserted areas, search for vulnerable targets, and snatch mobile phones, purses, and chains before fleeing.
The arrested accused have been identified as Prashant, resident of Mauli Jagran; Rameshpal, resident of Vikas Nagar; Anil Kumar and Priyanka, both residents of Mauli Jagran, Chandigarh.
Police said that during the investigation of several recent snatching cases, CCTV footage revealed the repeated presence of a suspicious e-rickshaw near the crime scenes. Acting on this lead, a special team under ASI Sulkhan Singh was formed and a naka (checkpoint) near Chandigarh Ambala Highway was set up.
Police nabbed the four accused on Wednesday night and recovered three mobile phones, two gold chains, purses, and the e-rickshaw used in the crimes.
Police said the gang exploited the identity of poor rickshaw drivers to win people’s trust and mainly targeted women and the elderly.