Gangsters Lagarpuria and Dheerpal convicted under MCOCA for 2021 heist

According to the officers, Gulia, better known as Vikas Lagarpuria, and Dheerpal Kana, alias Dheelu, had been booked under MCOCA sections 3 (punishment for organised crime) and 4 (punishment for possessing unaccountable wealth on behalf of member of organised crime).

New Delhi: A Delhi court has convicted two jailed gangsters, including Vikas Gulia, who is linked to the 2021 multi-crore Gurugram heist case, have been convicted in a 10 -year-old Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) for running an organised syndicate that has carried out serious crimes, such as murder, extortion and car-jacking.

While the court has convicted the two gangsters under section 3, they were acquitted under section 4 for lack of sufficient evidence (Representative photo)

According to the officers, Gulia, better known as Vikas Lagarpuria, and Dheerpal Kana, alias Dheelu, had been booked under MCOCA sections 3 (punishment for organised crime) and 4 (punishment for possessing unaccountable wealth on behalf of member of organised crime).

While the court has convicted the two gangsters, who worked in close coordination since they entered the crime world around 2012, under section 3, they were acquitted under section 4 for lack of sufficient evidence.

Lagarpuria is presently lodged in Delhi’s Mandoli Jail while Kana is in Rohini jail.

“The court convicted the two under section 3 of MCOCA after it found that they were running an organised crime syndicate for which evidence showed their consistent and repeated involvements in serious crimes like extortion, murder, arms offences, carjacking and intimidation. Also, multiple previous chargesheets and one conviction in the past 10 years were proved in the court of law,” said an officer, quoting from the judgment.

Allegedly involved in nearly 30 cases, Lagarpuria was suspected to have planned the theft of ₹40 crore from the maintenance office of a residential society in Gurugram’s Sector 84 in 2021. Two doctors, a Delhi Police official and one Haryana IPS officer, among others, were also arrested in the case.

In December 2022, Lagarpuria was deported from Dubai following his arrest by the Interpol. He was arrested by the law enforcement agencies of Haryana and Delhi soon after he landed at the Delhi airport. He had fled to Dubai using a fake passport. The Delhi Police had issued a red corner notice (RCN) against Lagarpuria while the Haryana Police had also issued a look out circular against him, the officers said.