Over two months after a carjacker was gunned down and another was arrested, their 29-year-old accomplice was arrested on August 3, the police said on Friday.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Rajesh Deo said the accused, identified as Kalia alias Safruddin alias Safar alias Shanu, a resident of north-east Delhi’s Nand Nagri, was arrested following a tip-off from a cinema hall in Nand Nagri after a brief scuffle.
On June 5, Kalia’s accomplice Noor Mohd was killed and Ravi was arrested following an encounter with the police.
The accused had stolen a car from outer Delhi and parked it near a hospital close to Vivek Vihar police station.
The police had traced the car during investigation. They laid a trap and waited for the accused to pick it. The accused arrived in another car early on June 5 and tried to flee with the stolen car. The police fired at them. While Noor died in the encounter, Kalia managed to flee in the car they had come.
The investigation was then transferred to the Crime Branch.
Car thefts
During interrogation, Kalia told the police that he and his accomplices had been committing car theft in Delhi and nearby areas since 2012 and would dispose the stolen vehicles in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan and in the north-east region.
“He has disposed around 100 stolen vehicles since last year. At his instance, a stolen car used in the Vivek Vihar encounter has been recovered. Tools used for commit the thefts were also seized,” the officer said.
Modus operandi
The police said their modus operandi involved breaking the window of the target car and then using a drill machine to unlock the steering wheel. The accused also knew how to switch off the GPS system in case one was installed in the car.
“Kalia is involved in 17 cases of motor vehicle thefts. He was arrested in 2017 by the south-east district police,” the officer added.