Delhi Pragati Maidan tunnel heist: Seven held for gunpoint robbery of delivery agent

NEW DELHI: The Delhi police arrested seven people in connection with a gunpoint robbery of a delivery agent and his associate inside the Pragati Maidan tunnel on June 24.

The accused were identified as Usman Ali alias Kallu (25), Anuj Mishra alias Sanki (26), Kuldeep alias Lungad (26), Irfan (22), Sumit alias Akash, Pradeep alias Sonu, and Amit alias Bala.

During the initial interrogation, it was revealed that Anuj Mishra was riding an Apache and Amit was riding pillion while Irfan and another person were on a Splendor.

According to police, the main conspirators of the crime were Usman Ali and Pradeep. "Usman was working as a courier boy with Amazon for several years in the Chandni Chowk area and had knowledge of the area regarding the movement of cash at Kucha Ghasiram, Kucha Mahajani etc," Special Commissioner of Police (Crime) Ravindra Singh Yadav said.

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Yadav said that Usman had taken loans from several banks and lost money in IPL satta and was desperate to get money to pay his debts and hatched the conspiracy to rob businessmen who carry cash. "He provided the crucial inputs and identified the target," he said.

"The second accused Pradeep alias Sonu is a dreaded criminal and was in judicial custody for 8 years in a ransom case and was released 2 years back from jail. Pradeep was previously involved in 37 cases and was one of the main conspirators in the present case," said Yadav.

The incident which hit headlines took place on June 24 when four motorcycle-borne men on two bikes waylaid a car and looted a delivery agent and his associate of Rs 2 lakh at gunpoint inside the Pragati Maidan tunnel.

The whole act was caught on a CCTV camera in which the robbers could be seen getting off their motorcycles and pointing guns at the two men in the cab who were carrying a bag with the cash. One of the robbers snatched the bag and all of them fled the spot.

Recce for 3 days

The senior official said the accused did recce for three straight days, rather were prepared to rob any person but were not able to find the right target.

"They knew that the cash transaction took place between 2 pm to 5 pm in the area. They usually reach there around 2 pm and start identifying their target," the Special CP said.

On Saturday, they identified their target who was carrying a bag of cash and ultimately committed the brazen crime.

Deliberately chose tunnel for robbery

During the interrogation of the accused people, it was revealed that they deliberately chose to commit the robbery inside the tunnel thinking that no other car would pass by.

"While they were chasing the car, they instantly decided to rob them inside the tunnel only," the senior official said.

Cops intensify night patrolling

Following the incident, the Delhi Police has intensified patrolling in the national capital, especially during the night hours which are prone to such robberies.

On the intervening night of June 26-27, more than 1,500 people were detained and over 270 vehicles were seized from the central district. "Action was also taken against "Bad Characters" and those disturbing peace under relevant sections of the CrPC," a senior police official said.

He said that officers of all ranks were on the ground during patrolling on Monday night with special emphasis on foot patrolling. The mobilisation was done in all the vulnerable areas of the district. Police personnel in huge numbers were deployed across the 15 districts of the force to check suspicious movements and curb criminal activities.

The special drive was carried out under the supervision of the special commissioners of police (law and order) Dependra Pathak and Sagar Preet Hooda who were also on the ground to ensure that no untoward incident takes place and citizens feel safe to travel even late at night.

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