How 5 Delhi teens robbed delivery boys using stolen bikes, snatched phones

A five-member gang of teenagers in south-west Delhi’s Najafgarh amassed a fortune in five months with this modus operandi until police busted the ring and arrested three of them on Thursday.

First they steal motorcycles and ride around neighbourhoods to snatch smart phones from pedestrians. Then they order goods from e-retailers through the stolen phones and rob the delivery man.

A five-member gang of teenagers in southwest Delhi’s Najafgarh amassed a fortune in five months with this modus operandi until police busted the ring and arrested three of them on Thursday.

The arrested gang-members are 18-year-old Hemant alias Laddu, Sunil and Mohit aka Tony, both aged 19. Two of their partners are on the run.

Besides bikes and phones, the booty included expensive electronic gadgets, home appliances, branded clothes, wristwatches and shoes.

The robbers placed their online order to a fake address, a trick to avoid detection and confuse the delivery man. He calls up the phone number given in the online order when he fails to locate the address. The robbers direct him to an isolated place, where they ambush and rob him.

Deputy commissioner of police (Outer) MN Tiwari said the boys were clever and tech-savvy.

“They have CCTV cameras in their homes. The live feed is connected to their mobile phones and they monitor every visitor … so that they could run during a police raid.”

But their careful strategy to avoid drawing attention failed after they robbed at gunpoint a delivery van carrying goods worth Rs 1 lakh in the Najafgarh area on May 28.

They had booked a pair of shoes and waylaid the van when it came to deliver the order. The teens drove the vehicle to a secluded spot and shifted the parcels to another car. The van was later found in Jharoda village, police said.

A hunt was launched after van driver Sikander and courier boy Saurav informed police about the armed robbery. A tip-off led police to the robbers, waiting on two stolen bikes near Anaj Mandi in Najafgarh to commit a similar crime.

“A pistol was found on them. We recovered phones, electronic goods and another stolen bike,” Tiwari said.

The gang had placed 50 online orders through two e-commerce sites in four months. Investigators are trying to find out how many delivery boys were robbed.