New Delhi, Apr 15 (PTI) Six alleged members of a Bangladesh-based dacoit gang, who committed violent robberies and murders across multiple states and would flee to the neighbouring country in between crimes, were arrested following a midnight encounter with Delhi Police personnel near Sarai Kale Khan, officials said on Wednesday.
The police claimed that the gang relied on a network of local contacts and relatives across India to identify potential targets.
“The accused, all residents of Bagerhat district in Bangladesh, were apprehended during a high-risk operation carried out by the Anti-Extortion and Kidnapping Cell (AEKC) of the Crime Branch in the intervening night of April 14 and 15, based on a tip-off,” a senior police officer said.
The police said the gang had illegally entered India through the Indo-Bangladesh border and was planning to commit a dacoity in South Delhi. “Acting on the tip-off, a team laid a trap near a secluded forest area close to the Sarai Kale Khan cremation ground (in South East Delhi),” the officer said.
When the team tried to apprehend the suspects, they opened fire in an attempt to escape. The police said they retaliated in a controlled manner and overpowered six of them.
The arrested accused have been identified as Suman Hauldhar alias Pannu (35), Saifful Islam (31), Sohail Sheikh (35), Mohammad Nasir (48), Noor Islam alias Nadim Khan (56) and Zakir (40). Two of their associates managed to escape under the cover of darkness, the police said.
During the operation, four country-made pistols, live cartridges, spent cartridges and tools for breaking into houses were recovered from their possession, they said.
A case has been registered and further investigation is underway to trace the absconding accused.
According to the police, the gang had been operating for several years using a hit-run-hide strategy, targeting affluent households, particularly elderly residents, in Delhi and other states, including Goa, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh and Odisha.
“They would enter India illegally, commit dacoities involving brutal violence, and then flee back to Bangladesh to evade arrest. After lying low for a few months, they would return and target new areas,” the officer said.
The police claimed that the gang relied on a network of local contacts and relatives across India to identify potential targets with substantial gold and cash holdings. They avoided using mobile phones and depended on human couriers and smugglers to cross borders undetected.
The gang is accused of involvement in at least 14 cases of dacoity, robbery and murder across various states. In one of the cases registered at Mapusa in Goa in 2025, the accused allegedly broke into a house, tied up family members, assaulted them and decamped with cash and jewellery worth Rs 35 lakh.
In another case in Panaji, they reportedly looted around one kilogram of gold ornaments and Rs 3 lakh after confining the victims inside their home.
In Karnataka’s Hubballi, the gang allegedly assaulted elderly residents and looted valuables after forcibly entering their house. In earlier incidents, members of the gang have also been linked to murder cases during dacoities, including the killing of a senior citizen.
The police said some of the accused were also wanted in older cases, including an encounter case in Uttar Pradesh and multiple dacoity cases in Karnataka.
Non-bailable warrants had been issued against two of the arrested in Delhi cases.
“The team of the crime branch had been tracking the movement of the gang for several months and had coordinated with police teams in Goa and other states to gather intelligence.
“Further efforts are underway to identify additional members of the network, including those who facilitated illegal entry and provided logistical support to the gang in India,” the officer said. PTI BM BM RT RT
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.