RailEnquiry

An interstate drug-and-loot gang was busted on Sunday after East Singhbhum police arrested 15 of its members 'including kingpin Vikas Mandal ' in three different raids near Tatanagar station and at Parsudih. Three pistols, a bunch of master keys and a booty of ornaments robbed from train passengers across South Eastern Railway were found in their possession. East Singhbhum SSP Akhilesh Kumar Jha said they received a tip-off and raided Singh Hotel near Tatanagar station at 4am. "Five persons were arrested while they were planning another robbery," Jha said. After grilling the five, police learnt that there were more members of the gang in the city. "We learnt some of them were staying in the house of one Rajendra Singh at Golpahadi in Parsudih. A raid team was sent to the locality within an hour and it rounded up five persons, including the house owner," the SSP said. Five more were arrested from another house in the same neighbourhood, close on the heels of the second raid, taking the total gang members in police net to 15. According to a senior police officer, all the arrested hailed from Khagaria district of Bihar and targeted train passengers across both Eastern Railway and South Eastern Railway. Shedding light on their modus operandi, Jha said the criminals first posed as passengers and travelled extensively on various routes to identify potential targets. "Generally, they drugged and robbed people. But, at times, they employed other tactics. For instance, one group embroiled a passenger in some vague argument, while another decamped with the target's belongings. By the time a passenger realised what was happening, it was too late," the SSP said. Officer in charge of Tatanagar GRP Mithilesh Kumar, who assisted one of the raids, said the gang had confessed to five of the drug-and-loot cases registered with them. DSP (law and order) Kanhaiya Upadhaya, who supervised the raids, said they suspected that there were more members involved in the racket. "We will interrogate those arrested about their other aides. Besides, photographs of the criminals will be put up at various railway stations, including Tatanagar and Chakradharpur, to seek information and generate public awareness," he added.