Ghaziabad: Three held over ₹4.25 crore jewellery showroom theft

The salesman roped-in his schoolfriend and his woman friend, also residents of Modinagar, to carry out the theft. The two have been absconding since the incident, police said

Ghaziabad: Days after jewellery worth ₹4.25 crore was stolen from a showroom in Raj Nagar District Centre on June 12 morning, police on Tuesday arrested the showroom’s 24-year-old employee, his 52-year-old father, and a woman friend, for allegedly orchestrating and carrying out the theft, police said.

According to police, the 24-year-old suspect, who joined the showroom as a salesman about a month ago, had allegedly planned to steal the jewellery for leading a luxurious life with his woman friend, aged 23. (Sakib Ali/HT Photo)

All three arrested suspects are residents of Modinagar.

According to police, the 24-year-old suspect, who joined the showroom as a salesman about a month ago, had allegedly planned to steal the jewellery for leading a luxurious life with his woman friend, aged 23.

The salesman roped-in his schoolfriend and his woman friend, also residents of Modinagar, to carry out the theft. The two have been absconding since the incident, police said.

“A day before the theft on June 11, the salesman threw a party for his office colleagues and included drinks in the menu. He knew that the showroom’s keys were with the cashier. So, he made him drink heavily and stole the keys from his bag. The next morning, the salesman arrived with his schoolfriend and opened the showroom around 7am. They collected gold jewellery, packed it in two trolley bags and fled,” assistant commissioner of police (ACP) (Kavi Nagar) Suryabali Maurya told HT.

The FIR named the salesman and other unidentified persons.

“During investigation, CCTV footage showed the salesman and another person, unlocking and entering the showroom on June 12. Several teams were roped in and the salesman, along with his father and his own woman friend, was arrested from near Avantika locality,” the ACP added.

Deputy commissioner of police (DCP) Dhawal Jaiswal said that the salesman had tasked his woman friend to sell off the stolen jewellery. A portion of the stolen items was also recovered from his father’s possession.

“Police have so far recovered jewellery worth about ₹3.16 crore and ₹6.5 lakh in cash. The salesman’s schoolfriend and his woman friend are absconding, and a reward of ₹25,000 each has been announced for their arrest. The arrested suspects have no previous criminal record,” the DCP added.