2 robbers held after shootout in south Delhi
NEWDELHI: Two suspected Bangladeshi robbers were injured in a shootout with police in south Delhi’s Taimoor Nagar on Friday midnight.
One of them suffered a bullet injury to his thigh while the other was hit in his knee by another bullet. A head constable was hit by a bullet on his bulletproof vest during the gunfight, police said.
The two injured men and three more suspected Bangladeshi nationals were arrested from the spot. Police said they are all members of a syndicate involved in many cases of robbery, burglary and attempt to murder in Delhi-ncr, Goa, Karnataka, and Uttar Pradesh. Four such cases were solved with their arrest.
Additional commissioner of police (crime) Rajeev Ranjan said the men were also wanted in a four-month-old firing and attempt-to-murder case i n Delhi’s Preet Vihar in which 57-year-old assistant sub-inspector (ASI) Lokesh had suffered a bullet injury to his left shoulder.
The assistant sub-inspectorand a homeguard personnel were attending a burglary call at a house when the robbers fired at them and fled.
Police said the men used to enter India through the porous India-bangladesh border. They used to take shelter in rented accommodations and frequently changed their hideouts.
“After striking in several parts of India, these Bangladeshi robbers used to return to their country to avoid police,” said Ram Gopal Naik, deputy commissioner of police (crime), adding the gang is led by Farooq alias Aslam.
The additional CP said the crime branch team was looking for the gang ever since the attack on the policeman in July. Last week, the crime branch received information about the movement of the gang members in Delhi-ncr.
The police through its criminal intelligence network learnt that the robbers were planning a robbery in south Delhi’s New Friends Colony.
“We learnt the robbers would assemble at a specific place in Taimoor Nagar. Our 10-member team laid a trap in the area. Around 12.15 am, the suspects were spotted and asked to surrender. Three of them opened fire, forcing the policemen to retaliate in self-defence,” said DCP Naik, adding three bullets were fired from each side.
The raiding team overpowered the five Bangladeshi men after the gunfight. Two of them, who were injured, were taken to a nearby hospital. “They are out of danger. Three pistols, some five cartridges and equipment for house break-in were seized,” Naik said.