Delhi Police probe theft of Rs 1 lakh cash, end up recovering Rs 70 lakh

The builder told HT that every penny stolen from him was “white money” and withdrawn from the bank. He said the discrepancy was because of an initial confusion, which was later communicated to the police.

Investigating the theft of Rs 1 lakh cash by a ‘thak-thak gang’ from the car of a builder in south Delhi on Wednesday, the police recovered Rs 70 lakh cash from the two suspects they arrested within 24 hours.

An investigator who did not want to be identified said the builder had “under-reported” the theft. (BLOOMBERG NEWS / Representational Photo)

An investigator who did not want to be identified said the builder had “under-reported” the theft. “After being targeted by the thak-thak gang, the builder had called one of his friends who advised him to lodge a police case, but not mention the real amount stolen,” the officer said, adding, We will be finding the source of the cash and why the builder under-reported the theft.

The builder told HT that every penny stolen from him was “white money” and withdrawn from the bank. He said the discrepancy was because of an initial confusion, which was later communicated to the police. “My wife is unwell and I didn’t want her to be affected by the amount stolen from me,” said the builder, who belongs to Faridabad but operates from south Delhi.

Atul Kumar Thakur, deputy commissioner of police (south), said the builder was travelling on the Panchsheel-Shahpur Jat road in a car on Wednesday when his attention was drawn by two men on a motorcycle. “They pointed out to some problem in the car. When the builder and his driver stepped out, they found some black oil leaking from the bonnet, the two thieves made away with two briefcases,” he said.

This is a common modus operandi of the thak-thak gangs which are known to use such tactics to divert their victims’ attention.

The builder alerted the police and said the two stolen briefcases contained Rs 1 lakh, jewellery worth Rs 2 lakh and Rs 50,000 in foreign currency. “We scanned CCTV footage and identified the suspects’ motorcycle. We began investigation by identifying all south Delhi thak-thak gangs that used a Silver Royal Enfield,” the DCP said. Eight such gangs were identified and the very first gang the police began probing turned out to be the thieves. “When we checked their hideout to recover the stolen cash and valuables, we found a briefcase containing Rs 70 lakh cash. We recovered the stolen jewellery and Rs 73,000 in multiple foreign currencies and denominations,” the DCP said.