Delhi gang behind jewellery store robbery? Cops scan cameras

NOIDA: Days after a jeweller was shot at by three robbers who barged into his shop in broad daylight and fled with a tray of gold, Noida police have failed to make any arrests in the case. The investigation, too, has not made much headway as the number plates on the two bikes used in the crime — Honda Shine and Hero Splendor — were fake.
According to police sources, the registration number of the Honda Shine was found to be a fake on the day of the crime itself while the number plate on the other bike showed it was registered in the name of a Ghaziabad resident. However, when a police team reached his home, it was revealed that the number had been allocated earlier to a scooter.
Ranvijay Singh, additional deputy commissioner of police, said they were trying to find out if gangs from Delhi were involved in the robbery.
“The CCTV footage of the road that the robbers took have shown their location up to Dharamshila Hospital in Vasundhara Enclave area in Delhi. Since they were wearing masks inside helmets, it seems that they are seasoned criminals who have carried out multiple such robberies in the past. We are gathering information on such gangs,” he said.
Police have also not ruled out the possibility of personal enmity behind the robbery. “We are conducting raids in several areas of Delhi that share their borders with Noida. As of now, we are exploring both angles despite the fact that the victim has in his statement denied of any personal enmity,” said Sankalp Sharma, DCP (zone 1).
Naresh Panwar was shot at in the head and stabbed in the back on Thursday inside his shop at P block market in Sector 12. He was rushed to Metro Hospital, from where he was shifted to a health facility in Delhi. His brother Kamal Panwar said Naresh is still in the ICU but his condition is stable. “We don’t think anybody has a personal enmity of this level with us that can prompt them to try and kill us,” he said.
Meanwhile, a group of businessmen and representatives of All India Jewellers and Goldsmith Federation met local MLA Pankaj Singh and commissioner of police Alok Singh on Saturday, demanding swift action into the case. Earlier, representatives of federation had highlighted security lapses in the city and called for shutting down of shops by jewellers. While most of them opened shops on Saturday, the P block market, where the robbery took place, remained shut.