Two teens steal ₹2L from home to fulfil US dream, held at airport

INSPIRED BY ENGLISH MOVIES, THE BOYS, AGED 14 AND 15, CONFESSED THEY HAD STOLEN MONEY BECAUSE THEY WANTED TO WORK IN HOLLYWOOD

NEW DELHI: Two teenagers, who fled from their home in Imphal and stole ₹2 lakh from their parents, were in for a rude shock on Thursday when a staffer at the ticket counter of Terminal 3 at Delhi’s International airport informed them that they need a passport and visa to travel to the United States of America.

Surprised at the two teenage boys offering to pay for their air travel, the staffer asked them for their identification details, such as copies of their passport and visa for their travel to the US. The two reportedly asked the woman why a passport and visa was necessary because they had the money in cash to pay for their travel. The woman informed the police control room.

Police recovered around ₹1.92 lakh from the two, who are students of Class 7 and 9.

InspiredbyEnglishmovies,the boys, aged 14 and 15, confessed they had stolen money because theywantedtoworkinHollywood. They had flown from Imphal and reached Delhi on Wednesday afternoon. At the Imphal airport, they had bought the ticket themselves and had used their Aadhar card at the airport.

Police said their parents run a business of fish ponds. The teenagers had been planning their escape for over a month.

“I spoke to the two teenagers. They were clueless but had decided to flee to Hollywood. This is worrying too. In the last few months, I have come across many cases of teenagers from Northeast fleeing their homes and coming to Delhi to meet their facebook friends, whom they thought were their life partners. There were two minor girls from Assam and Meghalaya who had fled home and come to meet their partners in Chandigarh and Ludhiana. We are also identifying gangs who are into such crimes,” said Robin Hibu, Joint Commissioner of police (Airport) who is also nodal officer for Northeast residents in city.

The boys have been handed over to a woman, from their village in Manipur, who is settled in Delhi. Police have contacted their parents and said the two would be handed to them soon.