A gang of burglars fascinated by Honda City cars has been busted after they shot a girl in South Delhi on Saturday for raising an alarm and foiling their attempt.
The suspects used the stolen cars to commit burglaries in South Delhi shops early in the morning, when they felt police patrolling was at its lowest.
According to police, the gang used motorcycle keys to steal Honda City cars, 10 of which were taken from Malviya Nagar itself. Six cars have been recovered so far.
“They found Honda City cars to be sturdy, steady and stable,” said Ranveer Krishnia, Joint CP (South-Eastern Range).
The gang had a special modus operandi for breaking open the shutters, prompting senior police officers to call upon shopkeepers to use shutter sirens for safety.
Police said that the suspects would attach an iron chain to a Honda City car using a hook. The chain would then be clamped onto the shutter on the other end. “The car’s force generally broke the shutters without much trouble,” said Prem Nath, DCP (South).
The gang, which is believed to be involved in more than 30 crimes in the last three months, used the same modus operandi on Saturday when they had targeted an electronics shop in Moti Bagh.
However, the noise had woken up Neeru and her father, who runs a Safal store nearby. The girl raised an alarm, causing the gang’s kingpin, Rohit, to shoot at her.
The girl was hospitalised even as the suspects fled with whatever electronics they could get their hands on. The girl is out of danger, police said.
Interrogation of the suspects revealed that all the eight members carried firearms and did not hesitate to shoot if they sensed any threat.
Officials probing the case have alleged that the day after this incident, the gang had opened fire on the owner of a Mahindra XUV and robbed him in Mehrauli.
The 25-year-old gang leader, Rohit, has allegedly been involved in several assaults on policemen too. In one such incident in Mehrauli, he had allegedly thrashed a policeman who had caught him committing a burglary, police said.
In another incident in Saket, he pointed a pistol at a constable when his associate was nabbed.
Barring some incidents in other districts, the gang generally targeted South and South-Eastern Delhi such as Lodhi Colony, Lajpat Nagar, South Campus, CR Park and Sunlight Colony.
They used stolen cars to commit burglaries in South Delhi shops early in the morning
