In a major crackdown, the Commissionerate Police on Tuesday busted a gang of ten looters, including four non- Odia women, who usually looted people on the promise of providing call girls in and around the capital city and seized three cars, two motorcycles, 12 mobile phones, a gold chain and cash of Rs 47,000 from their possession.
The gang used innovative ways of luring people to commit the crimes. The gang was led by the four young women, three of whom belong to Kolkata, while another was identified as a resident of Bihar. Ranjan Nayak alias Ranjia (39), Jibanendu Das alias Jiban (32), Biswa Ranjan Das alias Bulu (28), Brahmananda Padhi alias Papu (32), Sibananda Das alias Dipu (25) and Bunty alias Akash alias Prasanjit Mohanty (22) along with the four girls aged between 19 and 28 were forwarded to court.
According to Commissioner of Police Dr RP Sharma, on Monday, the gang contacted a businessman of western Odisha and asked him to come to Phulnakhara on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar. Then three male members of the gang accompanied the businessman to a room in nearby Naharakanta area where three woman members were already present.
As the man reached there, they robbed him of Rs 51,000 and a gold chain. Then the robbers dropped him on their vehicle and fled. Police said the modus operandi of the group was to contact people over phone and then they were called to a secluded place where the gang members loot them. Moreover, they also loot people after seeking lift from them. “The group had a very novel of looting people. They used to approach customers through websites and phone promising call girls. Then the lured customers were asked to come to a particular place where the gang used to rob them,” added Sharma
Efforts are on to establish the gang’s link with a car robbery after seeking lift in the Khandagiri area of Bhubaneswar on Sunday night, said Sharma.