Police shoot robber dead in encounter at Delhi's Usmanpur

Deputy commissioner of police (north-east) Sanjay Kumar Sain said that the deceased has been identified as Aakash, a resident of Kartar Nagar.

A police team on the lookout for snatchers spotted a group of suspects — who waylaid and robbed people by wearing women’s clothes — in the jungles around Yamuna Khadar in north-east Delhi on Friday night and asked them to surrender, but they opened fire. A sub-inspector retaliated and shot at them, leaving one dead, police said on Saturday.

(Representational image)

Deputy commissioner of police (north-east) Sanjay Kumar Sain said that the deceased has been identified as Aakash, a resident of Kartar Nagar. He said that three other suspects were nabbed after the encounter. They were identified as Vishal alias Rahul Negi, Monu alias Chinese and Nikhil.

On Friday evening, the gang members attacked an advocate, identified as Tushar (who goes by the first name) and injured him. In his police complaint, the victim said that he was coming from the Khadar area when five to six suspects assaulted him and snatched his mobile phone. He had a sharp injury due to which he was sent to a hospital and a case was registered at New Usmanpur police station, police said.

Acting on the advocate’s complaint, the police team moved towards the Khadar area in search of the suspects on Friday night and noticed the presence of seven to eight suspicious persons at a desolated spot, deep in the jungles. When police asked them to identify themselves, they opened fire.

“The police personnel warned them to surrender but they did not pay any heed and again fired upon the police team,” DCP Sain said. He said that sub-inspector Nitin retaliated in his self-defence and a bullet hit one of the suspects, while the rest of the gang members escaped by taking advantage of the darkness. A pistol and two empty cartridges were recovered from the spot, he added.

The injured suspect was identified as Aakash and he was rushed to Jag Pravesh Chandra hospital in Shastri Park for treatment. Since his condition deteriorated, he was later referred to Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narain hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.

When police checked deceased Aakash’s antecedents, it was found that he had seven criminal cases registered against him, including robbery. .

Police said that a case under relevant sections of the IPC and Arms Act has been registered.

Investigations have revealed that the group wore women’s clothes to attract their victims and were involved in several robbery cases in and around the Khadar area. “During our search operation, three associates of deceased Aakash were apprehended from the Khadar area itself,” DCP Sain said, adding that Vishal has also been found involved in six cases of robbery. The criminal antecedents of two others are being verified.