Three days after armed robbers held the 54-year-old wife of a businessman hostage at her house in northwest Delhi’s Ashok Vihar and fled with ₹75 lakh in cash, police on Saturday said they had solved the case after arresting six people, including two brothers, and apprehending two minor boys following raids in Delhi, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh.
Police said they recovered ₹51.52 lakh in cash and three high-end mobile phones purchased with the proceeds.
Additional deputy commissioner of police (northwest) Ravinandan BM said an accused juvenile was the mastermind of the robbery. He and the other suspects had been planning it for nearly a month and had conducted a detailed reconnaissance of the victim and her family members.
The juvenile was also found involved in a 2023 murder case registered at the Ashok Vihar police station.
Police said that on August 19, the victim, Neeraj Verma, was alone at her residence as her husband, Manoj Kumar, who runs a fasteners manufacturing factory, left for work and their daughters went to their wholesale store at Chawri Bazar.
Around 11.30am, Verma heard the lift arriving at her floor. When she opened the main door, she spotted two unknown men near the staircase, who asked her for drinking water. Sensing suspicion, she refused and tried to close the main door, but was overpowered and dragged inside the house, with her legs tied. One of the accused took out a knife and threatened her, police said.
{{/usCountry}}Around 11.30am, Verma heard the lift arriving at her floor. When she opened the main door, she spotted two unknown men near the staircase, who asked her for drinking water. Sensing suspicion, she refused and tried to close the main door, but was overpowered and dragged inside the house, with her legs tied. One of the accused took out a knife and threatened her, police said.
{{/usCountry}}“Two more suspects entered the house. They taped her mouth, ransacked the house for nearly 25 minutes and fled with the cash,” he added.
Police said the woman rescued herself and called her husband, who in turn informed the police. The family members told the police that the stolen money was kept for the marriage of their daughters.
A case of robbery, voluntarily causing hurt while committing the robbery, and robbery or dacoity with attempt to cause death or grievous hurt was registered under sections 309(4), 309(6) and 311 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), and multiple teams were formed to identify and nab the robbers.
Through technical surveillance, CCTV analysis and leads, police learnt about the involvement of people based in Delhi, Ghaziabad and Amritsar. Accordingly, police conducted raids and nabbed the accused.
Police identified the accused as a 24-year-old and a 22-year-old from Ashok Vihar, a 24-year-old from Ghaziabad, a 38-year-old, a 31-year-old and a 22-year-old from Amritsar. The apprehended juveniles are aged between 16 and 17.
Before the robbery, the accused tried to enter the house posing as a delivery agent, but their attempt was foiled when the woman called her daughters and found nothing had been ordered.
“The accused closely studied the movement of the family, and some among them stayed at a hotel in Sawan Park,” added the additional DCP.
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