Delhi: Snatcher pulls government official’s chain as car halts at signal

NEW DELHI: Snatchers continue to strike at will in the capital, with a senior government official becoming their latest victim in south Delhi’s Lodhi Colony.
Police said Kimbuong Kipgen (56), a secretary with the Public Enterprises Selection Board, was targeted by a youth at a traffic signal near Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Friday afternoon.
In her complaint, Kipgen said she and her husband were headed from Khanna Market to Kaka Nagar in their Maruti Esteem car around 2pm.She said their driver was at the wheel. As the car’s air-conditioning wasn’t working, they had rolled down the window. When the car halted at a traffic signal, Kigpen stated, a youth who appeared to be in his 20s, came to them and asked for directions. All of a sudden, he pulled her gold chain and ran to the other side of the road where another youth was waiting for him on a bike. Before she or her husband could react, the suspects had fled, the complainant said.
They could manage to jot down only the last two digits of the bike’s registration number. The couple immediately made a PCR call and later filed a complaint. They said the other suspect also appeared to be in his early 20s. One of them was wearing a blue shirt and was of short height.
DCP (south) Vijay Kumar did not respond to TOI’s calls for an official comment. Sources said the police brass had given specific instructions to cops to crack down on snatchers, especially in south Delhi. According to Delhi Police data, 476 incidents of snatchings were reported in January 2019 alone, showing a rising trend. During the same period in 2018, the number was slightly lower at 436.
Statistics suggest that roughly 16 incidents of snatching are happening in the city every day. The capital is divided into 187 police stations.
Senior officers confirmed that an FIR under Section 356 (assault or use of criminal force during commission of a crime) and 379 (theft) of IPC had been registered in the latest case and investigation were on.
Cops said they were looking for all possible clues and CCTV footage from the area was being scanned. They were also trying to ascertain the ownership of the bike. Sources said local informers were being questioned for leads. They were looking at past incidents and tracking history sheeters. A few suspects have been called in for questioning, an officer said.