Three held for ₹38 lakh robbery on Delhi’s Def Col flyover

Deputy commissioner of police (south-east) Esha Pandey identified the three suspects as Abu Bakar, 19, Jeeshan alias Mantri alias Shavan, 23 and Asif, 26, all residents of Shriniwaspuri in south Delhi.

Four days after two people were robbed of Rs38lakh on the Defence Colony flyover in south Delhi, the police on Wednesday said that they have arrested three suspects.

According to a senior officer, the two victims hired an auto-rickshaw, and when they were on the Defence Colony flyover, four people on two motorcycles waylaid them.

Deputy commissioner of police (south-east) Esha Pandey identified the three suspects as Abu Bakar, 19, Jeeshan alias Mantri alias Shavan, 23 and Asif, 26, all residents of Shriniwaspuri in south Delhi.

Police said on July 15, around 5:45pm, the police control room was informed about a robbery incident on the Defence Colony flyover on the Lala Lajpat Rai Road. When the police reached the spot, two persons -- Anit Kumar Yadav and Chhatar Singh -- told the officers that they work for a private firm in Chandni Chowk, and were returning to their office after collecting Rs38 lakh from a readymade garments traders in Lajpat Nagar-IV. They said the money was kept in a bag that was wrapped in a polythene bag, investigators said.

According to a senior officer, the two victims hired an auto-rickshaw, and when they were on the Defence Colony flyover, four people on two motorcycles waylaid them. First, they tried to snatch the bag but when the two victims resisted, the robbers threw chilli powder in their eyes and escaped with the bag, the officer added.

During probe, police said, CCTV footage from cameras installed at readymade garments market, Amar Colony were checked and the entry route of the suspects was ascertained. The CCTV footage showed the movement of four youngsters in the area. They were then seen on two motor cycles following the auto-rickhaw, the police said. “Police zeroed in on a suspect by analysing mobile dump data, call detail records and the dossiers of criminals with similar modus operandi,” the DCP said.

A second officer said the phone number was issued in the name of one Harsh, a resident of Shriniwaspuri, and two more suspects, Abu Bakar and Jeeshan were also identified through the call records analysis.

Following this, Abu Bakar and Jeeshan were arrested from Sriniwaspuri. The third suspect Asif was arrested from Panipat, where he was staying in a hotel, the DCP said. She added that it has been ascertained that Harsh is a driver and lives in Ghaziabad.

The DCP said Harsh took the robbers to Khurja in UP, soon after the robbery. Efforts are being made to arrest other accused in the case, she said.