Thakurganj cops nab hi-tech burglars
[ WEDNESDAY, JUNE 12, 2002 2:19:27 PM ]

LUCKNOW: Believe it or not, burglars are now going hi-tech. For, those behind petty crimes are now using sophisticated gadgets like walkie-talkies to execute their crimes.

The Thakurganj police were in for a surprise when they busted such a gang on Tuesday. They recovered a set of radio transmitters along with stolen goods worth lakhs of rupees. The gang confessed to involvement in over a dozen cases of burglaries in the old city in recent past.

“It was by sheer chance that we nabbed these suspicious looking youths today and it later turned out that they were burglars stalking the area,” said station officer (SO) Thakurganj AK Sahi.

He said police suspicions were confirmed following the recovery of a specially made iron rod from the gang’s possession which it used to break latches and locks.

During interrogation, they even laid their hands on a pair of walkie-talkie which the gang had bought from Mumbai. Shakeel, a gang member who is a native of the tinsel town, allegedly bought this set which was stolen from an industrial unit there, the police said. Regarding the use of the set, Shakeel revealed that while four members of the gang broke into the house, the fifth stood outside.

“We operate during day time and identify houses which are left locked and then break in,” revealed Chand, one of the arrested. A resident of Rais Nagar Chand had been earlier arrested on similar charges.

The gang said that the member on guard used the set as an alarm in case of a threat.

Belonging to 16 to 25 years of age, apart from Chand, the rest have landed in the police dragnet for the first time. The remaining three have been identified as Monu, Sahdab and Rahul Gupta, 16, the youngest of the lot.

Stolen gold and silver ornaments worth Rs 50,000, nearly a dozen watches, cameras, briefcases, LPG cylinder, television sets and household utilities worth over Rs 1 lakh was recovered in a series of raids at the instance of the accused.

The recovered goods were stolen from six houses in Thakurganj and two in Saadatganj which were identified by their respective owners, confirmed SP City West RS Rathore.