Conmen pose as cops, steal $6,000 from Iraqi national

Two men posing as policemen allegedly stole $6,000 from an Iraqi national on the pretext of conducting an inspection near a traffic signal in Sector 40 on Thursday.

The police said the victim had come to the city for the treatment of a bone marrow-related illness at a private hospital and was returning to his hotel in Sector 39.

This is the third instance of a foreign national being targeted in the past week, suggesting the involvement of the same gang, the police said.

All three incidents have been reported in a radius of at least two kilometres.

HT had reported on Thursday that the police had constituted three crime branch teams to track down the suspects, but are yet to zero-in on the suspects.

Pawan Kumar, station house officer (SHO), Sector 40 police station, said that the latest incident took place near Kanhai traffic signal, not too far from an earlier incident reported on October 5.

“The victim and his caretaker were returning to their hotel, when two men, driving in a white car and claiming to be policemen, stopped them to check their documents. The suspects stole the cash and fled. The suspects are yet to be identified,” said the SHO, adding that a case of theft was registered.

On October 5 night, three men, driving around in a white Honda City car, had stopped an Iraqi national and his two siblings near Kanhai traffic signal in Sector 40, to check their IDs. The suspects claimed to be policemen, dressed in plain clothes, and stole $2,400 from the victims’ handbag before decamping.

Two days later, three men posing as cops stole $11, 400 in Sector 44 near a private hospital from a native of Baghdad.

The police said that alleged gang members get tip-offs about patients, who come to the city for medical aid, and take up accommodation in hotels in areas close to private hospitals in sectors 38, 39, 52 and the Huda City Centre Metro station.

A police officer, requesting anonymity, said that the gang members tell the victims that they are checking documents to detain illegal immigrants and those trafficking narcotics. “The gang has been using fake number plates on vehicles to avoid being traced,” said the officer.