Mother-son duo arrested for assaulting, robbing elderly woman

A mother and her son have been arrested for allegedly assaulting and robbing an elderly woman inside her home in south Delhi’s Sunlight Colony area on Monday.

The accused include a 53-year-old domestic help who worked at the victim’s house and her 30-year-old son. Police recovered two mobile phones and Rs 10,000 in cash from their possession.

The incident took place on December 13 at a house in Bhagwan Nagar, Ashram. Police said the maid, identified as Sunita, attacked the elderly woman, Narayani Devi, with an iron pan and robbed her of gold and silver jewellery before fleeing with the help of her son, Sagar Chauhan. A case was registered at Sunlight Colony police station under Section 309(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

According to police, the victim was alone at home when the attack took place. Sunita allegedly struck her on the head with an iron pan. She then stole a gold chain weighing about 25 grams, a pair of silver anklets weighing around 300 grams and Rs 1,500 in cash. The accused fled the spot soon after. The Deputy Commissioner of Police (South-East) said swift action helped crack the case.

“Our team analysed CCTV footage and gathered local inputs. Both accused were traced and arrested within days. Such crimes against senior citizens will not be tolerated,” the DCP said.

“The accused assaulted the elderly woman inside her own house and escaped with valuables. The case was treated as serious due to the age of the victim and the violent nature of the offence,” a senior police officer said.

A special team was formed soon after the complaint was received. The team scanned CCTV cameras in and around the area and used manual intelligence to track the suspects.

Police found that after the robbery, the accused shifted to Palam Colony in southwest Delhi and started living there as tenants.

Both Sunita and her son were arrested in Palam Colony. During their arrest, police recovered two mobile phones and Rs 10,000 in cash. Investigators said the cash was part of the money earned after selling the victim’s gold chain. During interrogation, the accused allegedly admitted that they committed the crime out of greed. Police said they revealed that the stolen gold chain was sold soon after the robbery and the money was used to buy mobile phones. Neither of the accused has any previous criminal record, police said. Further investigation is underway to recover the remaining stolen jewellery and identify the buyers.

Police have advised senior citizens to be cautious while employing domestic help and to ensure proper verification. The injured woman is reported to be stable.