A burglar, who had carried out a daring robbery at the residence of noted film lyricist and Rajya Sabha MP Javed Akhtar, has been arrested by the New Delhi district police. The enterprising thief had stolen a laptop, cell phone and Rs36,000 cash from the 60 lodhi Road residence situated in highly secure New Delhi district.
Considering that it was not easy for a stranger to break into the house meant for VVIPs on lodhi Road, investigators are now probing the role of an insider. Police sources said that the 24-year-old accused has been identified as Vikram Singh Panwar, who was staying in South Delhi’s Defence Colony along with his friend for the last six months. “In the wake of a sudden spurt in burglary cases in lutyens’ zone, a team led by SHO of Tughlak Road Police Station Naresh Solanki started working on leads about gangs operating on a similar modus operandi. The police team arrested Vikram following an FIR lodged in August,” sources added.
The accused initially tried to mislead investigators by fabricating stories and claimed that he was not even present in the Capital when the said incident took place. However, he was soon exposed by police who traced the location of the stolen laptop with the help of technical surveillance. The laptop was recovered from Chamoli district in Uttarakhand. Vikram was again questioned; this time he broke down and confessed. “He confessed to have had committed the crime with the help of an insider. He said that after the incident, he had fled to his native place in Uttarakhand where he sold all the stolen items,” said a police source, adding that he sold the laptop for Rs35,000 and took Rs15,000 as advance payment.
The incident in question had occurred on August 8, 2013. Akhtar was not at home at the time of the break-in. The incident was reported on August 9 when Akhtar’s personal secretary found that the lock on the door was broken and some valuables were missing. He immediately informed police. Based on his complaint, a case was registered under Section 380 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) at Tughlak Road Police Station of New Delhi district,” a senior police officer said.