Truck hijacked on Yamuna e-way, silver worth ₹1.25 crore ‘robbed’
It is not a case of robbery. The case has been lodged on the basis of the written complaint forwarded by the victim. At this point of time, our investigation is continuing and we cannot disclose more.
RAM KUMAR, inspector general (Meerut range)
NOIDA/GHAZIABAD: Several men in luxury cars allegedly hijacked a truck ferrying a consignment of silver jewellery worth ₹1.25 crore on the Yamuna Expressway before finally fleeing with the consignment.
The truck, along with the driver and an armed security guard, was allegedly taken from the Noida-jewar stretch of the expressway to ITO in central Delhi, where they were finally dropped off, the truck’s owner claimed.
Police officials estimate the value of stolen items at nearly ₹1.25 crore, while no valuation was mentioned in the FIR. The truck, which was attached to a renowned courier company for the delivery, was on its way from Agra to IGI Airport in Delhi.
The incident took place around 2.30pm on April 3 after truck driver’s Amit Kumar and security guard Satyavir Singh crossed the Jewar toll. They allegedly saw a group of men waiving at them.
“There were two cars — a Fortuner and an Innova. Initially, the driver did not stop the truck, but the Fortuner followed the truck and cornered it. There were four men in the Innova and six in the Fortuner. The Innova had a blue beacon light. One man, who was in a police uniform, asked the driver for papers, saying that the consignment was illegal. When the driver got off the truck to show them the documents, he was pulled inside the car and was forcibly held there by other men,” said Kuldeep Dhingra, the truck owner.
“The security guard, who works for the courier company, was hit the men by the butt of a pistol... They both were bundled inside the Innova, while the Fortuner and the truck followed them. They were finally dropped off near a park in ITO from where they called me up,” Dhingra said.
Dhingra added that he later received a call from Khirjapur near Karnal that some people had found the truck abandoned there.
He said he initially approached the Delhi Police, but was directed to the UP Police as the incident happened at Jewar.
The Jewar police finally registered the case under IPC sections for cheating and criminal breach of trust.
Ram Kumar, inspector general (Meerut range), told HT that the police suspected complicity of insider behind the incident and it is being probed.
“It is not a case of robbery. The case has been lodged on the basis of the written complaint forwarded by the victim. At this point of time, our investigation is continuing and we cannot disclose more,” IG Kumar, said.
Jagat Ram Joshi, circle officer (Jewar) said that multiple suspects were questioned but no arrests were made till Sunday evening.
“We have reviewed the CCTV footage as well. However, only the victim’s vehicle could be spotted. The other cars may have come on the expressway from elsewhere,” he added.
In a similar heist in neighbouring Ghaziabad on the night of March 18, a gang of robbers had arrived in police uniforms and robbed the employees of a Mumbai based company of gold items worth nearly ₹3 crore.
The Ghaziabad Police later arrested four men, including two serving assistant sub inspectors of Delhi police and two others who had information about the business deal of the victims.