Advani gang member, wanted in 33 cases, held
The police said he was a member of the Advani Gang, which is notorious for stealing ATMs, and there was a reward of ₹50,000 for information leading to his arrest.
The police on Monday arrested an alleged gangster, accused of being involved in at least three dozen cases of ATM thefts, vehicle thefts, snatching, loot and robbery, among other crimes.
The police said he was a member of the Advani Gang, which is notorious for stealing ATMs, and there was a reward of ₹50,000 for information leading to his arrest.
According to the police, the accused, identified as Irshad, a Nuh resident, was arrested on Monday from Sohna after a tip-off.
Shamsher Singh, assistant commissioner of police (crime), said that during questioning, the accused confessed to being a part of the gang and having been arrested multiple times.
“He is a history-sheeter and so far, we have traced 33 criminal cases against him, which include 29 cases of theft and four robbery/dacoity cases in the city. The gang was active in the Manesar area, with a majority of cases reported at police stations under Manesar jurisdiction,” said ACP Singh.
The accused was produced in a district court on Tuesday and sent to police custody for five days, said police.
Police said that on May 7 last year, a senior executive of a company, which had the contract for maintaining ATMs, had filed a complaint at the Sector 53 police station alleging that unidentified persons had stolen an ATM from a kiosk in Wazirabad.
The police said the case was handed over to the crime branch and the accused person’s involvement was confirmed after a tip-off.
A police officer privy to the investigation, requesting anonymity, said that the gang specialised in uprooting ATMs, especially in Manesar, Farrukhnagar, Sadar, Bajghera and Rajendra Park areas.
“The gang members recce the area before targeting an ATM. They used to bring a pick-up truck and tie one end of a strong rope to the ATM machine and the other end to their pickup truck. They then pulled the machine out of the ATM booth. After driving a distance, they used to dismantle the ATM and take the cash,” the officer said, about the gang.
In September 2018, the police had arrested two members of the same gang, who were carrying a reward of ₹50,000 each and were allegedly involved in around two dozen cases, including ATM thefts and attempt to murder.
The police had recovered a countrymade pistol, four live rounds of ammunition, equipment used to steal vehicles and a motorcycle.