Gang of robbers busted in Delhi

Six members of a gang who used to offer travellers soft drinks laced with sedatives before robbing them of their belongings have been arrested in the national capital, police said Friday.

One of the gang members, Asaru, was arrested July 19, while his associates Asif, Mohmmad Shahid, Nooruddin, Muzahir and Mohammad Najir - all residents of Kishanganj in Bihar - were arrested July 28 from Delhi's Anand Vihar area.

Around 15 tablets used by them to sedate their victims, 12 mobile phones, four wrist watches, some foreign currency and a country-made pistol were also recovered from their possession.

"They had robbed 70-year-old Pakistani national Muhammad Nabi July 1 when he landed in Delhi from Karachi. The accused managed to get Nabi boarded into an auto-rickshaw at Anand Vihar inter-state bus terminus where he had reached to take a bus to Moradabad," Deputy Commissioner of Police Sindhu Pillai said.

"On the way, the accused offered Nabi a soft drink which he drank and became unconscious. They stole his belongings which included clothes and money and dumped him at a place in Ghazipur. Police brought him to hospital," the officer said.

During questioning, the gang members disclosed that they did not stay at a fixed place and would keep moving to avoid being caught. They formed a gang and started operating in groups of three or four.

"Nooruddin is an auto driver. He had hired an auto-rickshaw. The gang was operating in the same auto-rickshaw," the officer said.