New Delhi, June 11 (IANS) In a significant breakthrough in curbing street crime in the National Capital, the South West Delhi District Police have arrested two habitual snatchers and one receiver of stolen goods.

The arrests were made by a joint team from the Anti-Snatching Cell and Police Station Safdarjung Enclave, following a detailed investigation into a series of snatching incidents in the area. With this action, four cases of gold chain snatching have been successfully worked out.

According to the South West District Police, “Two notorious snatchers cum B.Cs. of PS Ambedkar Nagar namely Anil, Arun and one receiver of stolen property, Mohd Imran, have been arrested. The accused were involved in a series of chain snatchings and are repeat offenders.”

The police statement further revealed that Anil, a resident of Dakshinpuri, has a criminal history involving over 40 cases of murder, attempt to murder, robbery, and snatching, while Arun of Madangir is involved in at least 18 such cases. Both are listed as ‘bad characters’ (B.C.s) of PS Ambedkar Nagar.

The operation followed an incident on May 28, when a 22-year-old woman, Riya, reported that two unidentified men on a motorcycle snatched her gold chain in the Green Park area. FIR No. 242/25 was registered at the Safdarjung Enclave police station, triggering a high-intensity investigation.

“The team analysed over 200 CCTV cameras within a 10-kilometre radius of the incident spot and tracked the suspects using their vehicles — an Apache and a Splendor motorcycle — commonly used in the crimes,” the police said.

The investigation revealed the criminals used various tactics to evade detection, including changing clothes after each incident, using helmets during the crime, and riding in a zigzag manner to blur CCTV footage.

Upon arrest, the accused led the police to the receiver, Mohd Imran, who admitted to purchasing the snatched gold chains and mortgaging them for loans. All three are now in custody.

“Two motorcycles used in the commission of crimes and four gold chains were recovered,” the statement confirmed.

The police also disclosed that the accused were previously involved in a police encounter case registered with the Special Cell.

Deputy Commissioner of Police South West District, Amit Goel, IPS, praised the team’s efforts and confirmed that further investigation is ongoing.

–IANS

rs/sd/