Gurugram: In a judgement that can prove to be a major deterrent for rising incidents of snatching, a district court here on Tuesday sentenced a man to five years in prison for snatching a cell phone a year ago.
The convict, identified as Naveen, has also been asked to pay a fine of Rs 25,000, failing which his jail term would be extended to six more months.
The case occurred on July 27 last year when Naveen robbed a cell phone from one Raju at Pataudi railway station.
Naveen's luck, however, ran out after he was caught by passersby. After being arrested, the court trial carried on for over a year.
Over 500 cases of snatching were registered in 2017 in Gurugram, averaging to over two incidents each day.
Last year also saw a 20 per cent rise in snatching cases compared to 2016, which witnessed 324 snatchings.
Snatchers in Gurugram seem to have no fear of law, despite Haryana having a strong law against this crime, to the extent of making it a non-bailable offence.
One of the impediments is the lack of filing FIRs in most cases to pursue the case further.