Four robbers nabbed after high-speed chase in Maharashtra's Beed

Beed (Maharashtra), Dec 17 (PTI) Police have arrested four members of a gang involved in theft and robberies after a 10-km chase in Maharashtra's Beed district, officials said.

Local residents also helped the police in apprehending the accused on December 12.

The gang members, hailing from Madhya Pradesh, had been operating across Beed, Ambajogai and Georai tehsils. They would enter wedding ceremonies disguised as guests or beggars and steal gold ornaments, a police release said on Tuesday.

In several cases, they targeted bank customers by tracking them after cash withdrawals and snatching their bags. At times, they would deliberately spill tomato sauce on victims to divert attention and flee with cash and valuables, it said.

On December 12, the four accused arrived at Kaij in Beed with the intention of committing a robbery while riding stolen motorcycles, but their plan failed.

Investigations suggested that the gang had earlier committed bag-lifting thefts in Nandurbar district before entering Beed with the stolen money, the police said.

They later attempted a robbery at a bank in Kaij, which failed, forcing them to flee towards Beed city on two unregistered two-wheelers, where they came under suspicion of the local crime branch team, which immediately initiated a chase.

While two of the accused were apprehended on the spot, the remaining two were captured after a police chase to Massajog, located around 10 km from Kaij, officials said.

Local residents assisted the police in overpowering the accused.

The police recovered two stolen motorcycles and mobile phones from the accused, identified as Badal Krishna Sisodia (24), Kala alias Hrithik Mahesh Sisodia (29), Deepak Dilip Sisodia (29) and Jaswant Manilal Sisodia (27), all residents of Gulkhedi village in Rajgarh district of Madhya Pradesh, the release said.

Their arrest is likely to help solve several unsolved theft and robbery cases in the region, the police said.

According to the police, the Sisodia gang often involved minors in thefts during wedding ceremonies. The children were used to steal purses from women or sneak into bridal rooms, taking advantage of crowded venues, the release said.

Similar incidents had earlier been reported in Beed and Ashti. A similar gang was also busted by Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar police in the past, it added. PTI COR GK