3 locksmiths from Madhya Pradesh held for robbing houses in Delhi

New Delhi, May 1 (PTI) The Delhi Police has busted an inter-state gang of robbers from Madhya Pradesh with the arrest of three people for allegedly targetting locked houses and stealing valuables, officials said Thursday.
     According to police, the accused -- Surjeet Singh (41), Anil Singh (32) and Kirtan Singh (24) -- were locksmiths by profession and used their expertise to break into houses.
     A police officer said that a significant haul of stolen property, including gold jewellery and nine two-wheelers, was recovered from their possession.
     The accused are residents of Indore in Madhya Pradesh and have a history of involvement in burglaries.
     The police launched an operation after a burglary case was registered on April 20 in the Vijay Vihar area. The complainant reported theft of gold jewellery and Rs 50,000 in cash.
     "Teams reviewed CCTV footage, activated local informers and tracked the suspects. The trail led them to a hotel in Mahipalpur, where over 50 hotels were searched before the trio was apprehended on April 28," a senior police officer said.
     During sustained interrogation, the accused revealed that they would travel to Delhi monthly with the intent to commit multiple burglaries over a two-week span, the officer said.
     After booking a hotel room in Mahipalpur, they would scout locked houses during the day and steal a local two-wheeler at night to facilitate their crimes. They often targeted more than 10 houses in a single night before returning to Madhya Pradesh, said the officer.
     The police have linked the gang to 13 house burglaries and nine motor vehicle thefts across Rohini, South Rohini, North Rohini and other localities.
     Among the items recovered were over Rs 22,000 in cash, 10 gold bangles, two necklaces, nine rings, seven pairs of earrings and four gold chains. A specialized lock-breaking tool was also seized.
     "Surjeet has a criminal record with 10 previous cases, including under the Arms Act. Anil and Kirtan too have multiple burglary cases registered against them in Madhya Pradesh. Further investigation is ongoing," the police officer added.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)