Audi driving gang’s new ₹10cr theft wheels them into UP prison

Lucknow: In a 180-degree turn in fortune, five young men who moved in affluent circles and owned an Audi car ended up in jail after they turned to burglary to make up for nearly Rs 3 crore loss in online betting and speculative trading.On Thursday, the Barabanki police cracked the sensational theft of jewellery worth around Rs 10 crore from a luxury villa in Lucknow’s high-security Shalimar Paradise township.Police said they arrested all five accused and recovered nearly 90% of the stolen property in the case linked to the villa of Gorakhpur-based contractor Ajay Singh Baghel. The accused were produced before court and sent to jail.Those arrested were identified as alleged kingpin Akarsh Singh alias Yash of Daraganj in Prayagraj, Prithvi Pratap Singh of Azamgarh, Ritwik Yadav of George Town in Prayagraj, Anurag Kathuria of Jhunsi and Rishi Soni alias Chandan of the Kotwali area in Prayagraj. Police said Akarsh, son of a retired IRS officer, owned the Audi used in the crime.Recovered items included 57 pieces of jewellery worth several crores, Rs 14.85 lakh in cash, the Audi car and a licensed revolver.Barabanki superintendent of police Arpit Vijayvargiya, who supervised the investigation, said contractor Ajay Singh Baghel reported the burglary on April 30. Baghel told police that he and his family locked their villa on April 19 before leaving town. When they returned, jewellery worth nearly Rs 10 crore was missing.Investigators examined footage from CCTV cameras and found that Akarsh, who had been living in a neighbouring rented villa along with his father, had allegedly visited the complainant’s house on the night of April 23 to survey entry points leading to the second-floor balcony.Police said he returned the next day with Prithvi Pratap Singh, broke open a sliding door on the second floor and carried out the burglary. The duo then allegedly fled to Prayagraj in the Audi and stored the stolen jewellery at Anurag Kathuria’s residence. Parts of the jewellery were later sold through Ritwik Yadav and Rishi Soni.According to investigators, proceeds from the sale were routed into bank accounts and online trading wallets. Police said nearly Rs 14 lakh linked to online trading transactions was frozen during the probe.The investigation further revealed that Akarsh suffered heavy losses in online betting and speculative trading. Police said he earlier sold his house for around Rs 3 crore and received Rs 1.5 crore in advance, but allegedly lost the money in betting. He later tried to strike another deal involving the same property for Rs 50 lakh, worsening disputes and financial pressure.Police said mounting debt and gambling losses drove the gang to plan the high-value burglary. The case was cracked by a team led by Additional SP North Vikas Chandra Tripathi, and Vijayvargiya announced a reward of Rs 25,000 for the police team.