Movie to Bigg Boss, ‘Bunty chor’ is part of crime folklore
Real name Devender Singh, Bunty, with an “illustrious career” of 500 odd burglaries, has spent nearly 15 years in jail.
Security systems changed and locks became coded but Bunty chor stayed at the top of his game. With an “illustrious career” of 500 odd burglaries, Devender Singh aka Bunty chor, has spent nearly 15 years in jail, but has also managed to escape from custody or from being taken into custody on at least six occasions. He was arrested a dozen times and convicted in at least three cases.
Also Read: ‘Super thief’ Bunty back in business, arrested yet again
The one thing consistently remained at centre of the cat-and-mouse game between the police and Singh was the fact that he could break open any lock and break into homes through windows using a simple screwdriver.
A film based on him (Oye Lucky Lucky Oye), an appearance on the reality TV show Big Boss, a job as a private detective, and dreams of opening an “anti-burglary tactics school” – these were all things to Singh’s credit. But old habits die hard, and Singh swung back into action on Thursday.
Born and brought up in west Delhi’s Janakpuri, Singh dropped out of school after Class 9 and began stealing at the age of 14 in 1993, according to a presentation prepared by the Delhi Police in 2014-15.
While he was arrested by the police of different cities early on in his career, his ability to easily break into homes and walk out with electronic goods, artefacts, and branded clothes drew the attention of Delhi’s wealthy population.
“South Delhi area was the most affected,” said the police’s presentation. It is not surprising that it was the south Delhi district police that arrested him thrice so far, including in the latest instance.
The items Singh usually targeted included golf kits that he kept in his car and allowed him to pass himself off as a wealthy person, expensive watches, diamonds, scotch, guitar, works of renowned painters, artistic showpieces, cutleries, music systems, gadgets, and even pet dogs, said the police.
“At least twice, he stole away pet dogs. He had mastered the art of handling ferocious dogs in the houses he targeted. He would carry chicken pieces for the dogs if needed,” said a senior police investigator requesting anonymity.
He allegedly made it a point to check key bowls in the houses he targeted. If he found a car key, he would drive away with the goods in the stolen car – an act Singh allegedly repeated in his latest burglary.
“If there were multiple cars in a driveway, and Singh liked a particular one, he would remove the other cars, bring out the one he liked, and park the other cars back to their spots,” said the officer.
But unlike the other stolen goods that he usually sold at throwaway prices in hill stations that he would frequent with his girlfriends, Singh never sold the stolen cars, police said. “The cars would always be found abandoned later. And when more than one person claimed to be the owner of stolen goods recovered from Singh, he would settle the matter by playing the “arbitrator” and confirming whose house he stole them from,” police said.
Singh’s alleged involvement in the burglaries is attributed by the police to the “kick” he got out of it. He spent most proceeds from the theft on luxuries, a reason why he has no wealth today.
His ability to slip out of police custody kept the police on their toes in the later years. “When some Mumbai policemen were taking him to a police station (in 2007), Singh requested them to allow him to take his car along. On the way, Singh messed with the car’s fuse to stop the engine, requested the accompanying policemen to push his car from behind, and then drove away while the policemen watched,” said Chandan Choudhary, deputy commissioner of police (south).