Delhi man stages burglary at own house to repay loans, arrested

New Delhi: A 45-year-old man, who had reported a burglary at his house in Uttam Nagar, was arrested after it was found that he had staged the crime to repay his mounting debts, a police officer said on Monday.

The accused, identified as Butta Singh, worked as an AC technician and owned a shop in Sewak Park, he said.

Facing financial losses and struggling to repay loans, he allegedly stole gold jewellery from his house and reported a fake burglary, the officer added.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Dwarka) Ankit Singh said, "Butta Singh had lodged a complaint on March 21, stating that between 3 pm and 6 pm, unidentified people had stolen a gold necklace set, a gold mangalsutra, two gold rings, a gold chain and Rs 45,000 in cash from his residence." A case was registered at Uttam Nagar police station under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

During the probe, Singh's wife told police that around the time of the incident, she had left home to buy groceries, while her husband was out for work and children in school. When she returned, the jewellery was found missing.

The DCP said investigators noted that there were no signs of forced entry, and only Singh and his wife had the house keys.

CCTV footage from the area showed no unknown persons coming to the building at the said time, but Singh himself was seen entering and leaving the house within nine minutes.

His mobile phone records revealed messages from a finance company regarding gold pledges, the DCP said.

After being confronted with the evidence, Singh confessed that he had stolen the jewellery to clear overdue loan payments. He took a loan when he purchased his shop in 2022 and later took another loan to renovate it.

Additionally, he had bought a seven-seater taxi on bank credit, but financial setbacks led him into deep debt, the officer said.

Police have recovered a gold necklace set and a gold ring from his possession. Other gold items were found to be mortgaged at a pawn shop in Uttam Nagar.

Singh has no previous criminal record, police said. PTI SSJ RUK RUK