Victims of road mishap in Delhi turn out to be thieves on the run, held

New Delhi: A routine call about a road accident in Delhi's Kapashera ended up exposing a trio of thieves, leading to their arrest and the recovery of stolen goods, police said on Monday.

The thieves were in the police station speaking to officers about the accident when the victim of the theft was registering his complaint, they said.

According to officials, a PCR call was received around 8.13 pm on Wednesday regarding a collision between a scooter and a car near Kapashera, they said.

"When a police team reached the spot, they noticed that the two men on the scooter seemed unusually nervous and eager to settle the matter quickly," a senior police officer said.

The duo -- identified as Rohit Ravidas (25) and Karamjeet (28), both residents of Sonia Gandhi Camp -- aroused further suspicion when one of them was found carrying a mobile phone that he couldn't unlock.

A few pointed questions from the team turned the supposed accident case into a crime investigation.

"During sustained questioning, the men confessed to having committed a house theft in the early hours of the same day in Gopalji Colony in Kapashera. They admitted to stealing a bag and three mobile phones from one Lal Chand," he added.

At their instance, the complainant's stolen bag was recovered, and police soon tracked down their associate, Pankaj (33), also from Sonia Gandhi Camp. He was found in possession of another stolen mobile phone that had been sold to him by the duo.

Police said Rohit and Karamjeet are habitual offenders who steal from houses and pass on the loot to Pankaj, who sells it and divides the proceeds. One of the stolen phones was said to be already sold, they said.

Investigations revealed that Rohit is involved in four previous cases, while Pankaj has two prior cases, police added.