The Meerut gang, which originated from Uttar Pradesh, might have come to Vijayawada by air, to rob pilgrims during the recent Krishna Pushkarams.
The gang, which has network all over the country, commits offences by travelling invariably by flights and staying in posh hotels.
“Meerut gang will move to different States by knowing the schedules of jataras, utsavams and religious events. They will rob the devotees by diverting their attention during festivals, at bus and railway stations and during processions,” said City Police Commissioner D. Gautam Sawang.
Their modus operandi is to divide into groups and commit offences. Police arrested the gang members during pushkarams and recovered valuables, Mr. Sawang told The Hindu .
253 robbers held
“Other gangs apprehended during Krishna Pushkarams are Jolarpet gang, Avadi gang of Tamil Nadu; Delhi, Odisha, Puri, Balasore gang, Kharagpur, Bandel gang, Hooghly, Chandra Nagar, Bihar, Gulbarga, Medak, Hyderabad, Ahmednagar Gang, Kulasavadi, Sholapur, Madhya Pradesh and Ojikuppam gangs, the Commissioner said.
In all, 253 robbers of 23 gangs were arrested, 87 cases were booked. Of the Rs.30.86 lakh cash lost during the festival, police recovered property worth about Rs.26.85 lakh and five cases remained undetected.
Almost all the gangs commit thefts along with their family members, and the Central Crime Station (CCS) police arrested more than 100 women.
Apart from the Meerut gang, other gangs travelled by trains and checked into lodges on the outskirts to avoid police vigil, Mr. Sawang said.
3,000 families involved
“Many of the gangs confessed to their crime and police recovered booty, knives and cutters from them. The accused will speak more than 10 languages and alert their permanent legal advisers (advocates) whenever they are arrested in any State,” said a CCS officer.
The modus operandi of each gang is different and some of the gangs are violent. According to our estimate, nearly 3,000 families are doing robberies, and many of their family members are in different jails.
“We are in touch with our counterparts of the neighbouring States and are collecting the fingerprints, photographs and other details of the robbers. All the arrested gang members were remanded in judicial custody,” Mr. Sawang added.
