Devinder Singh alias Bunty Chor, last met his family five months ago in Delhi and convinced his father Kripal Singh that he had bid adieu to his wayward style of living.
‘’He met me five months back and told me that he was out of Tihar jail and he had completely stopped committing thefts. My son told me that he had become a reformed man and will not continue his wayward style of life any more,’’
Kripal Singh told Express over phone from New Delhi. Bunty, who was released from Tihar Jail seven months ago, also told his father that he had found a suitable job and that he would lead a decent life henceforth.
‘’He wanted Rs 8000 saying that he will be taking up the job soon and he needed money to meet his expenses until then,’’ said Singh, who gave his son the money. ‘’I thought that if he becomes a reformed man then it will be good for him.’’
According to Kripal Singh, Bunty left home in 1989 at the age of 14. For a long time, the family had no news of him, though in a desperate search they had even placed a man-missing ad in newspaper`.
‘’Later, we came to know about the life that Devinder was leading. In our entire family there is no one like him. His brother and sister are leading a honorable life,’’ said Singh, whose family is settled in Vikaspuri. Bunty was arrested in 1993 when he was just 18 years` old, but managed to escape from police custody.
“The following year he was spotted in Mumbai in a stolen car but he managed to give the police the slip. Bunty last landed in the Delhi Police net in January 2012, after his last reported theft in the capital.
“After being arrested several times, he was imprisoned for three years` in 2005. Following his release, the police tried to rehabilitate him by getting him employed with a detective agency but he did not stick to the job.
Assistant Commissioner (Crime detachment) K E Baiju said that during questioning, Bunty had told the police that he did not have any attachment to his family.
‘’He studied in a government school and is a class IX dropout. After every major heist, he used to escape to Nepal,’’ K E Baiju said.
Kerala police on Monday had contacted Kripal Singh to inform him about the arrest of Devinder Singh. Bunty had visited Nepal five times in the past and also managed to get a passport in the name of one Hari Thapa there.
Bunty’s girlfriend dumped him after he was arrested in 2002. According to Delhi police, Bunty used to live in posh hotels using the stolen money and he had that streak in him to commit more burglaries and wanted to commit high-profile thefts.
A Bollywood movie, “Oye Lucky, Lucky Oye” starring Abhay Deol, was made in 2008 on Bunty Chor’s life. After serving a prison sentence, “Bunty Chor” was a contestant in “Big Boss Season 4” aired on the TV channel Colors in 2010, but just lasted for a few days.