The Vijayanagar police, on Wednesday, nabbed five members of the notorious Bawaria gang for their alleged involvement in a series of chain-snatching cases in Bengaluru.
According to the police, the accused hail from Uttar Pradesh and Delhi. “They would fly down to Bengaluru and rent a house on the outskirts of the city for one to two months. They even transported a motorcycle from their hometown by train to Bengaluru, which they would use to target victims,” said a police officer, adding that their planning was so detailed that they worked in ‘shifts’.
While two of the accused used the bike to look for potential victims, primarily senior citizens walking alone, the others would take care of daily chores like cooking and cleaning. “When the first team returned, another would set out. They often changed the registration number of the motorcycle and their clothes to evade detection,” police claimed.
After committing a series of robberies, they would return to their hometown where they would sell the stolen items. After a few days, they would then hit other metro cities.
However, luck ran out for the accused when, after a series of chain snatching cases, the police formed a special team to track them down. With footage from CCTVs, the police nabbed the gang members before they could leave Bengaluru. The arrested accused have been identified as Rahul, Nitin, Tulsi, Kamal and Riyaz Ahmed. However, the leader of the gang managed to escape.
With their arrest, the police claim to have solved as many as six cases of chain snatching and a house break-in. They recovered gold jewellery worth ₹13 lakh from them. “We are on the lookout for their leader who escaped to Delhi,” said the officer.