Gurugram: After seeing a decline in the lockdown months of April to June, vehicle thefts in Gurugram have begun to rise again. In the month of August, there were 725 vehicles that were stolen as compared to July where 560 vehicles were stolen.
According to Gurugram Police from January 1 to August 31, a total of 1,685 vehicles have been stolen. These figures are way less than the previous year when in the same months, there were 2,731 vehicles that were stolen. Officials from Gurugram Police highlight that in the month of April and May there was a 57 per cent drop in the cases of vehicle thefts in Gurugram. From the second week of June, there has been an increase in this form of crime.
The Gurugram Police have arrested 30 persons this year who were involved in the incidents of vehicle thefts.
Interestingly, it is not only two-wheelers or four-wheelers that the thieves over the years have also begun to steal the car ancillary items and batteries. This trend has continued even this year with a large number of cases being reported.
"Vehicle thefts are one of the major crimes in the city and as the city has unlocked there has been a spike in the number of such cases. We have also begun to make a large number of people who are involved in these crimes. We have also identified certain locations where these gangs active so that the number of cases can be reduced," said a senior official from Gurugram Police.
Vehicle thefts were the highest reported crime in Gurugram in the year 2019. According to Gurugram police, there were 4191 vehicle thefts in the city. Out of the 4000 odd vehicles that were stolen in the city the district police have been able to recover only 700 vehicles.
There were 36 gangs that were involved in car thefts that were busted and a total of 95 persons that were arrested and the law enforcement officials were able to recover a total of Rs 2.6 crore. In 2017 3800 cases of vehicle thefts were registered which then grew to 4100 cases in 2018. One of the major reasons for such a low rate of recovery is that these crimes are committed by gangs from Mewat and outside states like Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. According to police officials, not only training criminals but even juveniles and unemployed youth are now getting involved in this form of crime because of the huge profit margins involved in the crime of vehicle thefts.