Bike-borne thieves flee with 200 kg of cardamom from moving truck in north Delhi; 3 held

New Delhi, Feb 25 (PTI) The Delhi Police has arrested three persons allegedly involved in a bike-borne burglary of 200 kg of cardamom from a moving truck in north Delhi, an official said on Wednesday.

According to police, an e-FIR was registered at Lahori Gate police station on February 17 on a complaint by Dukhi Kumar, a truck driver employed with a transport company.

Kumar stated that on the night of February 13, he had loaded cardamom bags -- each weighing 50 kg -- along with other grocery items from Khari Baoli in Old Delhi for delivery in Faridabad. After reaching the destination, he found that four bags of cardamom, weighing a total of 200 kg, had been stolen from the truck during transit.

During the probe, police analysed CCTV footage from the area and identified six persons on two motorcycles, following the truck. One of them was seen climbing onto the moving vehicle from its rear and throwing down the cardamom bags, which were then picked up by his accomplices, police said.

The registration number of one motorcycle was traced to a man identified as Deepak, a resident of Pul Mithai in Delhi.

The official said while Deepak was found to be absconding, local intelligence inputs led police to lay a trap in Pul Mithai area on February 20, where two persons -- Anand (30) and Pardeep (36), both residents of Bihar's Munger district -- were apprehended with a bag of stolen cardamom.

Another accused Sithun (24), a resident of Bihar's Bhagalpur district, was later arrested from Azadpur based on their disclosure.

During interrogation, the accused revealed that Deepak was the kingpin of the gang, and two others -- Sandeep and Sachin -- were also involved. They allegedly followed the truck from Khari Baoli to Sarai Kale Khan and stole the cardamom bags en route, the official said.

One bag of stolen cardamom weighing 50 kg and a motorcycle used in the crime have been recovered from their possession, police said, adding that efforts are on to arrest the remaining accused and recover the rest of the stolen consignment. PTI SSJ ARB ARB