Two snatchers held for targeting morning walkers in Gurugram

Police on Friday arrested two men for allegedly snatching gold chains from morning walkers in the city

Police on Friday arrested two men for allegedly snatching gold chains from morning walkers in the city.

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They added they recovered over 10 gold chains andtwo motorcyclesfrom their possession.

According to police, both men are part of a six-member gang that has been involved in over 100 cases of snatching across the Leisure Valley Park area in Sector 29, South City 1, 2, Nirvana, Malibu Towne, Sector 50, Golf Course Road, Sector markets such as 45, 31 and 29.

Preet Pal Sangwan, assistant commissioner of police (crime) said on May 26, they received a compliant from a Sushant Lok 1 resident that four men on two motorcycles intercepted him while he was out cycling and snatched his gold chain. “The incident was reported around 5.30am and we received four similar complaints from Kherki Daula, Galleria market parking lot, Badshahpur area and Sushant Lok 1 the same day,” he said.

Police teams scanned CCTV footage from each area and found that the same men on motorcycles were involved in each incident. One of the KTM motorcycles used in the crimes was stolen two months ago, police said.

With the arrest of the suspects, identified as Salim Ahmad alias Bhuru and Saddik alias Khadda, both from Nuh, police said they have solved a snatching case from May 26 wherein four men allegedly snatched the gold chain of the country head of a private company while he was out for a walk on Golf Course Road (GCR). Another victim, the vice-president of a private bank, a resident of Gulmohar Apartment in Sector 56 had alleged that he was targeted by four men on two motorcycles while he was cycling on Golf Course Road.

Sangwan said this is the same gang that snatched a gold chain from an Army officer when he was walking along a service lane in Gurugram’s Sector 45 on June 4. According to the police, the 42-year-old officer chased the suspects for over 100m but failed to catch them.

Police said they have identified the other members of the gang and are tracking them.

Sangwan said that the kingpin of the gang planned to earn quick money via chain snatching in 2018 as he was unable to make ends meet. “He roped in young men into his gang and trained them for at least two months to ride and flee after snatching. The four members joined him in 2020 but due to Covid-19 they could not target enough people. For the last four months. they were actively involved in snatching cases. Both of them are school dropouts and were identified based on CCTV footage from at least six locations. Teams were formed to keep a close watch on markets and caught them on Friday when they tried to snatch the gold chain of a woman during her morning walk,” he said.

The duo confessed to the police that they were trained by their gang leader who is also a resident of Nuh, said Sameer Ahlawat, inspector, Sector 39 crime unit.

Ahlawat said that the gang members targeted morning walkers and those who would walk slowly. “They would conduct reconnaissance of the area and snatch at least four chains a day and hand them over to their leader. He would give them ₹5,000 per chain,” he said.

The suspects were sent to judicial custody on Saturday after being produced before the court, said police.