Hunt on for 3 who targeted jewellery store

New Delhi: Police are searching for at least three men allegedly involved in a burglary at a jewellery showroom in north Delhi’s Dariba Kalan. Its owners found out on Monday that burglars had broken into the showroom and fled with cash and silver items worth around Rs 13 lakh over the weekend.A senior police officer said a few suspicious men wearing masks were seen on the CCTV camera footage loitering near the shop for a few days before the incident. They probably conducted a recce of the shop at least two-three times to study its layout, and even posed as customers to enter the store, the officer added. The gang finally entered the shop by drilling a hole in its wall from an adjacent shop that has been lying closed for the past several years. Police suspect that the incident might have taken place on Saturday night.The cops are still waiting for a breakthrough and now scanning the CCTV camera footage from the nearby areas to identify the men. “A trail of the entry and exit route points of the visitors in the area are being scanned for a lead. Time stamps are being meticulously collected and cross-referenced, utilising both manual inspection and advanced surveillance techniques,” police said.Kirat Kumar Soni (64) and his son Dennis (33), owners of the shop, got to know about the burglary upon opening the showroom at 1.30pm on Monday. They had left the shop around 8.30pm on Saturday and it was closed on Sunday. They suspect that the burglars might have struck after 10pm on Saturday night as the market usually stayed busy till then. Dennis said, “Our shop occupies a prime location in the heart of the market. Amid the constant stream of visitors, it’s nearly impossible to differentiate between a genuine customer and a potential threat. They all blend in seamlessly.”The owners said the gang had stolen silver items worth Rs 10-12 lakh and around Rs 1.5 lakh from the cash box. The shop’s CCTV cameras have also gone missing. “We suspect that they had entered the other shop through its roof, which is made of wood,” Dennis said.The shops shared the wall and the accused had drilled the hole in the 14-15-inch-thick wall with the help of a hammer, torch and a screwdriver. The items were found in the shop through which the entry was made. “The accused didn’t touch the main safe,” he added.A case has been registered under sections 457 (house trespass or house breaking at night to commit offence punishable with imprisonment) and 380 (theft in dwelling house, etc) of Indian Penal Code at Kotwali police station.
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