Delhi: 2 members of ‘tala-chaabi’ gang held in connection with Rs 1.5 cr burglary in Shahdara

Delhi: Two alleged members of ‘tala–chaabi’ gang, who pose as key-makers and survey houses locked for several days before breaking in, have been arrested in Rs 1.5 crore burglary case in Delhi’s Shahdara, police said on Wednesday.

The burglary, reported on September 12, involved the theft of nearly a kilogram of gold, 11 kg of silver jewellery, multiple diamond ornaments and other valuables from the home of Krishna Nagar resident Manna Lal Surana, they said.

The complainant had returned home around 1.15 pm to find the locks of the main gate, inner doors and cupboards broken and the house ransacked.

A case was registered and more than 2,500 CCTV cameras from Delhi to Indore were scanned and dossiers of burglars with similar modus operandi were analysed, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Shahdara) Parshant Gautam said.

Technical surveillance, interrogation of family members and ground intelligence helped zero in on the suspects.

Two men, Samrat Singh (30) of Vadodara, and Samit alias Sumit Singh (22) of Indore, were identified and arrested, the officer said.

During interrogation, the accused allegedly disclosed that they were part of an organised ‘tala–chaabi’ burglary syndicate operating along the Madhya Pradesh–Gujarat–Maharashtra belt. Members of the gang pose as key-makers during the day and survey houses locked for several days before breaking in at night.

They travel to Delhi by train, stay in budget hotels near railway stations, steal motorcycles for mobility, and quickly switch states after committing multiple burglaries, the police said.

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The duo allegedly arrived in Delhi with two associates, surveyed Shahdara localities, stole a motorcycle from the Man Sarovar Park area, and targeted the Krishna Nagar house on the night of September 11–12. After the burglary, they abandoned the motorcycle, stole another one to evade tracking, and fled Delhi, the police said.

The police recovered around 150 grams of gold jewellery, 3 kg of silver, a white SUV allegedly bought using the stolen proceeds, and a stolen motorcycle used in the crime. Both accused allegedly have several previous involvements in burglary and theft cases across Delhi, he said.

Further investigation is underway to trace additional gang members and recover the remaining stolen property, the police added.