Daylight dacoity at jewellery shop: 2 arrested accused found to have interstate links

Siliguri: The daring daylight dacoity at a prominent jewellery shop on Siliguri’s bustling Hill Cart Road has taken a turn as two of the arrested miscreants were found to have links to other states. The Siliguri Police on Monday presented the two accused in Siliguri Court, identified as Shafeeq Khan from Rajasthan and Mohammad Samsad Shekh from Bihar. Both of them have been remanded to 7 days of police custody by a Siliguri court.

According to police sources, the gang meticulously planned the heist over the past six months while residing in a rented house in the Phansidewa area of Siliguri. They had conducted prior reconnaissance of the shop and deliberately chose Sunday for the robbery, knowing that most other shops in the building would be closed, providing them an easier escape route. Sources further stated that they had brought two women from Bihar to use them in the dacoity. On Sunday, eight miscreants, including a woman, entered the shop posing as customers. They swiftly overpowered the security guard and threatened the staff at gunpoint before looting an estimated 10 kilograms of gold, diamond and platinum ornaments.

However, the police responded promptly, with the city traffic police and Khalpara Outpost Police managing to apprehend two of the culprits shortly after the crime. Firearms, a motorcycle and some of the stolen gold ornaments were recovered from their possession.

Following the arrests, the Siliguri Police Commissioner, C Sudhakar, personally visited the Siliguri Police Station to interrogate the suspects and review the case details. The police believe that the gang has extensive interstate connections. Four special police teams have already been dispatched to Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Rajasthan to track down the remaining gang members, who are suspected to have fled to these regions. On Sunday night, Commissioner Sudhakar also visited the Phansidewa Police Station to coordinate the ongoing investigation. Senior officers, including the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), inspected the shop to assess the crime scene and security lapses.

In the aftermath of the robbery, a delegation from the Trinamool Congress, led by Sanjay Tibruwal, Chairman of the Darjeeling District Trinamool Congress (Plains) and Arun Ghosh, president of the Siliguri Mahakuma Parishad visited the shop to meet with the distressed businessman.

Sanjay Tibruwal stated: “It is evident that this incident has links to other states. We need to be more vigilant. I believe all prominent jewellery shops should have armed security personnel, alarms and enhanced surveillance systems to prevent such incidents in the future.”