Guide held for drugging, robbing foreign tourists

He offered biscuits laced with sedatives

A tourist guide involved in drugging foreigners and then decamping with their goods has been arrested in outer Delhi, police said on Monday. With the arrest, police claimed to solve four cases.

Robert, 32, of Najafgarh was nabbed near his house on Sunday, said additional deputy commissioner of police (crime) Sanjay Bhatia, adding that some robbed electronic and other items have been recovered.

Robert told police during interrogation that he became a guide for foreign tourists as he can speak English fluently. But he was unsatisfied with his earning as he wanted to live a lavish lifestyle. 

To earn quick money, he along with his father Joseph decided to rob foreign tourists of their belongings. On December 30, 2005, Robert  and Joseph were arrested at Mandir Marg in central Delhi when they were decamping goods of an Irish national after drugging him.

After his release from jail in 2011, he again decided to start robbing foreign tourists by drugging them. “He posed himself as a tourist in Red Fort and Chandni Chowk areas and after entering the premises of the fort or in Chandni Chowk, he befriended single foreign tourists, gradually winning their trust,” said Bhatia.

Once the tourist became friendly, he would invite him for dinner and hire an autorickshaw. In the rickshaw, he would give the tourist biscuits laced with sedatives and ask the driver to take them to a deserted place where he would get down with the tourist. Once the tourist became unconscious, he used to decamp with their belongings.

Robbed with biscuits

On June 17 last year, he befriended a French woman at Red Fort and convinced her to go to India Gate. There he gave her biscuits laced with sedatives. When she became unconscious, he decamped with her belongings.

On March 13, he made friends with a Swedish national at Red Fort. He invited him for dinner and then robbed him.

On March 11, he befriended a South African in Chandni Chowk and convinced him to go to Raj Ghat. While going in an autorickshaw, he robbed him in the same fashion. On May 2, he befriended a Japanese tourist at Chandni Chowk and robbed him with the same modus operandi.