: A gang of thieves that struck at weddings in the National Capital Region and neighbouring States was busted by the Delhi Police on Monday.
The accused have been identified as Gokul Prasad, Sawant Sisodiya, Lakhan Sisodiya, Abhishek Sisodiya and Vikas Sisodiya. A juvenile is also a part of the gang. All six hail from Rajgarh in Madhya Pradesh.
They are suspected to have targeted around 100 upscale weddings in Delhi-NCR, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.
Modus operandi
Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) Ishwar Singh said the accused were able to keep staff at banquet halls and farmhouses on their payroll to collect information about the events lined up.
The juvenile and another accused would gatecrash a wedding and identify the bag where cash and other gifts would be kept. They would then escape with the goods.
“The thieves would never be in a hurry to leave the venues. They would mingle with the crowd and gain proximity to the families. The juvenile, who eventually did the bag-lifting, remained inconspicuous even while seated next to the bride or the groom,” said the DCP.
On how the gang was busted, the officer said they had scanned CCTV camera footage at the weddings where thefts had been reported.
Finally, on the basis of a tip-off, the police managed to apprehend the accused near the Chhatarpur metro station. At the time of their arrest, the accused were travelling in a stolen car, said the police.
Firearms seized
The police also seized a stolen Czech-made pistol with seven live cartridges, two illegal Indian-made firearms with four live cartridges, two stolen cars (Santro and Maruti Swift), a contract that was executed by the gang and the mother of the juvenile, and seven mobile phones from the accused.
