Snatching cases on rise in Ggn

The sharp rise in the number of snatching cases in the Millennium City has rung alarm bells for people heading out of their homes with valuables. This year, the cases have already surpassed the last year’s mark. 

In a move to check the rising cases of snatching, the city police have formed an anti-snatching investigating team.

The Gurgaon police have registered over 300 cases of snatching this year, which shows that at least one case of snatching is reported each day in the city.

A total of 102 cases were reported till August 31 this year, which rose three-fold to 300 by mid-November.

The year 2013 recorded a total of 226 cases, while 282 were registered in 2012, which shows that there has been a substantial rise in the crime in recent years.

The rise in figures also reflects in the lack of safety on roads. This is probably the reason why snatchers in Gurgaon roam on streets with confidence, despite the fact that the snatching is a non-bailable offence. According to law, a snatcher can be imprisoned for five to 10 years. 

Such is their terror that a policeman had a narrow escape on August 25 when he was shot at by a chain snatcher in the DLF Phase I area. “They roam around the city on motorcycles and drive away immediately after committing the crime. We have increased the patrolling, but cannot conduct raids because they do not have a fixed area of operation. If we increase vigilance at one spot, snatchers move to another location,” said a senior police official.

“We have noticed that a majority of snatchers are youngsters in their late teens or early 20s. They commit the crimes either to spend on shopping or to fulfill their needs for alcohol and drugs,” said Deepak Saharan, Deputy Commissioner of Police. Victims have also revealed that even if they note down the numbers of the bikes, then too there is very little chance of nabbing the criminal as the number plates they use are mostly fake or the bike is stolen from someone else.

“We have increased the checking of two wheelers at the check posts. We verify if the motorcycle has genuine registration numbers and if we see something suspicious, we investigate the matter”, Saharan added.