Member of gang that stole 30 ATMs held, say cops

The Gurgaon police today claimed to have arrested a man who allegedly was a member of notorious gang that uprooted and stole ATM kiosks and then extracted cash stored in these machines.

The gang was accused of stolen as many as 30 ATMs, crime branch officials said.

The accused, Istakh, disclosed that members of his gang would tie ATM kiosks with a belt and then uproot them with the help of an SUV, they said.

They would then flee towards Aravalli hills in Mewat district and cut the kiosks to extract cash, they added.

We have arrested the accused from Pachgaon crossing situated on NH 48 and he has confessed about uprooting or cutting 30 kiosks in the last few months, said DCP Sumit Kuhar said.

The latest ATM theft case was reported on May 7 from sector 53 area here.

Istakh told interrogators that the kingpin of gang, Shahid, was a native of Mewat's Tauru area, police said.

The gang carried firearms and slaughtering knives to attack in case police reached at the spot, they added.

The accused and his gang members covered their faces to avoid being filmed by CCTV cameras, officials said.

Police recovered an ATM machine from his possession, officials said.