Gang that used teens in 38 burglaries busted

Vadodara: The crime branch has nabbed a gang of five burglars that used teenagers to break into shops and steal valuables in and around the city.
The gang admitted to have committed 38 burglaries at Makarpura-GIDC, Por, Padra over last six months. The three teenagers from Banswada in Rajasthan, aged between 14 and 16 years, had become experts in entering the shops from narrow gaps.

“The gang had a modus operandi of targeting number of shops within a night and then disappear. They used to pick up an area and break in seven to eight shops in a row. Teenagers have slim body and are flexible. So the gang leaders roped in teenagers who were known to them for entering the shops through narrow gap in the shutter,” said Jaydeepsinh Jadeja, DCP (crime).

“The gang that was led by Ranchod Patanwadia and Kamlesh Damor roped in the three teenagers. They used to come to the city to work as casual labourers and leave after few months. Patanwadia and Damor gave them commission out of the stolen booty,” Jadeja told TOI.

The teenagers were trained to first look for cash in the shops they broke in. Then they picked up anything valuable and fled with their gang leaders. Sometimes the teenagers used to enter the shops or homes and open the door from inside so that others could enter in easily. The gang members, police said, knew that teenagers are not usually arrested by the police for committing thefts. “The teenagers were used in every burglary. We are trying to find out if they were involved in anymore burglaries in other cities,” Jadeja said.

The gang landed in the police net after it received information about their movement in Makarpura area and intercepted an auto-rickshaw they were travelling in. Five people including three teenagers travelling in the auto were questioned about their background.

“We found bundles of electrical wires and two mobile phones from the auto. When we questioned them, the gang admitted to have committed burglary at a shop in Makarpura. They had also broken in seven to eight shops in Por on the outskirts of the city sometime ago,” said Jaydeepsinh Jadeja, DCP (crime).

The gang admitted to have stolen mobile phones and several valuables from these shops. The cops arrested Patanwadia and Damor while the other three were let off as they were juvenile.