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Furniture store’s staffer fakes ₹4 lakh robbery, arrested
Noida: An employee of a furniture store in Sector 65A was arrested by the Phase 3 police on Saturday, seven hours after he had reported a false robbery of ₹4 lakh.
Noida: An employee of a furniture store in Sector 65A was arrested by the Phase 3 police on Saturday, seven hours after he had reported a false robbery of ₹4 lakh. The money was recovered from Ghaziabad, the police said, adding that the suspect was in debt and had to pay back lenders in Meerut.
The suspect, identified as Vikas Kumar (31) who is a native of Meerut, had been employed with the furniture store for the past 14 months as a field officer. According to officials, a call had come at the police helpline around 10.30am by Vikas alleging that he had been robbed of ₹4 lakh.
“He had withdrawn ₹4.1 lakh from the bank in the morning. He kept ₹10,000 in his pocket while rest of the money was in a bag. The money was part of the salaries for the employees of the store.Vikas, who was on his bike, alleged that two men on a bike intercepted him in Sector 65, snatched his bag at gunpoint and took his bike’s keys,” said Ankur Aggarwal, superintendent of police (city).
The whole incident seemed suspicious from the start, the police said, adding that there was discrepancy in his statements.
When the CCTV cameras of the bank and those in his route were checked, no suspicious vehicles were seen following him, said the police.
Officials said that Vikas has two wives, one of whom is in Meerut. Vikas told the police that he was not able to manage his expenses.
“He had given the money to his first wife in Sector 63 after which she took it to her home in Ghaziabad. A team from Phase 3 police station and crime branch recovered the entire amount, while the suspect has been arrested,” said Vaibhav Krishna, senior superintendent of police.
The police officials said that the accused was in debt and had to pay back lenders in Meerut after he had borrowed money for his father’s treatment three years back and for the weddings of his two sisters. He was also unable to sell his land in Meerut.
The wife doesn’t seem to be an accomplice in planning of the robbery, said police.
A case was registered at the Phase 3 police station under sections 420 and 406 of the IPC based on the complaint of the store owner, Abhinav Singh, the police said.
