The Faridabad Police has arrested five persons including a Delhi Police constable for allegedly robbing more than ₹12 lakh from two ATM machines here, an official said on Tuesday.
According to the official, the robberies -- which involved ripping open ATM machines using gas cutters and fleeing with the cash -- were the brainchild of the accused constable.
The arrestees have been identified as Delhi Police constable Hukam Chand (34), his nephew Arvind (26) -- both residents of Atali village in Faridabad -- and Vikas Kumar (24), Abhishek (19), and Vishal Kumar (19), residents of Bihar's Siwan district.
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A chain of ATM robberies
According to police, a representative of a private payment services firm reported that on July 3 night, one of its ATMs installed in Bhupani Mod was cut open and ₹6.53 lakh in cash was stolen from it. Based on the complaint, a case was registered at Bhupani police station.
Then, on the night of July 26, ₹5.71 lakh was stolen from another ATM in Sector-58 in a similar manner, prompting police to intensify the hunt for the accused.
{{/usCountry}}Then, on the night of July 26, ₹5.71 lakh was stolen from another ATM in Sector-58 in a similar manner, prompting police to intensify the hunt for the accused.
{{/usCountry}}Examination of video footage from more than 1,000 CCTV cameras finally led police to the accused, who were arrested on August 3 and 4, the official said.
"During interrogation, it was revealed that Delhi Police constable Hukam Chand is the gang's mastermind.
"Burdened by debt, he conspired with his nephew Arvind to steal from an ATM by cutting it open. The duo enlisted Vikas and Raju who worked as gas welders to carry out the theft," Assistant Commissioner of Police (Crime) Aman Yadav said.
He said Hukam Chand selected the ATM, briefed Vikas and Raju on details, and provided the necessary equipment including the gas cutter. Subsequently, the two welders cut open the ATM at Bhupani Mod on July 3 and stole ₹6.53 lakh.
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Accused arrested
Following the theft, Raju returned to Bihar in an apparent attempt to evade police, but ended up getting arrested in connection with a motorcycle theft case and is currently lodged in a Bihar jail. He will be brought to Faridabad on a production warrant, ACP Yadav said. Vikas, on the other hand, severed ties with Hukam Chand.
Needing accomplices, Chand summoned his brother Vishal and Abhishek Kumar from Bihar. After this, on July 26 night, the accused cut open an ATM in Sector-58 and stole ₹5.71 lakh.
"The main accused Hukam Chand was recruited into Delhi Police in 2016. He was deployed on PCR duty in Bijwasan," ACP Yadav said.
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Chand was allegedly aware that certain private ATMs did not have security guards at night, and their security systems were not very robust, thus targeting those specific ATMs, the official said.
The accused have been taken in five-day police remand and are being questioned, he added.