Snatcher turns matchmaker to rob people

Ludhiana: Next time, a matchmaker comes to your house with a prospective match for your near and dear ones, think twice before letting him enter the house.
The CIA-I on Saturday arrested a man who used to rob people by giving them sedatives after gaining friendly entry in their houses. The man used to target people who looked for matches for their children though matrimonial ads published in newspapers.

The accused, identified as Ram Tirath, 37, has executed crimes in different cities of Punjab and was also involved in snatching cases.

Tirath belonged to Khanna and had been staying in a rented accommodation at Jhabbewal village of Ludhiana district. The accused was arrested from near Jain Theka chowk following a tip-off when the accused was crossing by the area on a stolen scooter.

The police also seized 10 mobile phones, three pairs of gold earrings and three gold rings from his possession.

Deputy commissioner of police (investigation) Gaganajit Singh said the accused has been booked in 17 cases of thefts and snatchings. The Khanna police had arrested the accused, but on December 19, 2018, he fled after being presented in a court. On February 16, he looted gold jewellery of a 55-year-old woman in Daba area while impersonating as friend of her son-in-law.

The DCP said the accused is a matriculate. Initially, he started with snatchings, followed by thefts. Later, he started taking friendly entry in houses and robbing people.

“The accused has confessed that through matrimonial advertisements, he used to contact people over phone, impersonating as a middle man to fix a meeting in their house. When he would see presence of one or two persons in the house, he used to mix sedatives in their tea and would later escape with gold and other valuables,” added DCP Gaganajit.

The accused had living in the city on a rented accommodation for the past week. He had also submitted documents for police verification. Police will ascertain whether those are fake or not, DCP said.