Family held hostage, robbed in Delhi home

The footage showed a gunman robbing Behl’s wife who was in the front passenger seat with their four-year-old daughter in her lap.

In a crime caught on CCTV camera, three armed men robbed a 35-year-old businessman and his family just as he parked his Mercedes Benz car in his home in the upscale Gujranwala Town of north Delhi in the early hours of Sunday, said police.

3 armed men robbed a 35-year-old businessman and his family just as he parked his Mercedes Benz car in his home. (HT Photo)

With his wife, two children and their domestic help in the car at the time of the robbery, Varun Behl handed over his valuables without resistance.

The footage showed a gunman robbing Behl’s wife who was in the front passenger seat with their four-year-old daughter in her lap.

Minutes later, police intercepted the fleeing suspect in nearby Adarsh Nagar, and exchanged fire, said Vijayanta Arya, deputy commissioner of police (north-west). “We chased them for one-and-a-half kilometres before they scaled a wall and ran into a forest,” said the DCP. At least seven rounds were fired in the shoot out.

According to the DCP, the crime took place at 3.17 am on Sunday when the Behl, who owns a garment store, was returning home with his family after visiting a relative. In the back seat were his seven-year-old son and domestic help.

It was at that moment that the three men pointed their guns at him and held him hostage as they went about checking his wallet for money and stealing his phone and gold bracelet.

The footage showed his wife picking up her phone to dial the police when one of the suspects walked to her and took away her phone. He walked away after checking her neck and earrings for jewellery but returned to check the car’s glovebox.

The robbery, which lasted nearly two minutes, saw the robbers threaten the businessman against calling the police. Once the robbers left, Behl locked the gate and returned to comfort his family.

According to the DCP, the robbers headed towards Adarsh Nagar on a motorcycle where they encountered a police “trap team” formed to serve as a “surprise element” for criminals in the north-west district.

“The masked men came across as suspicious to the trap team, which signalled them to stop. The robbers seemed to halt, but when the police approached them, they tried to flee,” said the officer.

But, the police said they managed to intercept the motorcycle, forcing the suspects to flee on foot. A chase followed in which the robbers fired two-three rounds on the police who returned five rounds, said the DCP. Nearly one-and-a-half kilometres later, the robbers scaled a wall and ran into a forest.

The officer said that the appearance of the suspects matched with that of the robbers described by the Behl family. “We have registered a robbery case at Model Town police station and have certain leads on the suspects,” said the officer.