Punjab cop pulls off 70 burglaries while on duty

Aman Sood

Tribune News Service

Patiala, May 1

His is a classic case of Jekyll-and-Hyde syndrome. Luck ran out for Surinder Singh, a Patiala constable, who burgled houses on duty, when he was arrested by a police team on Thursday.

So deft was Singh that he managed to carry out one heist after another without raising much suspicion. “He is involved in more than 70 cases of theft. Interestingly, in all these cases, the FIRs have been registered against unknown persons,” said SHO Tripuri, Rajesh Chibbar.

Singh was on his way home after carrying out a theft, when he was stopped at a special naka. He was arrested after his vehicle’s search yielded Rs 3 lakh cash, 450g gold and some narcotic powder.

“Singh’s further interrogation resulted in the recovery of 2 kg gold, an MUV, two revolvers and 294g psychotropic powder,” said Chibbar. The accused has also invested in plots worth crores, said the police.

The accused, posted at police lines, sported a lavish lifestyle and was a regular at premium coffee shops. He used to flaunt his new phones, while his wife would show off her jewellery, said police sources.

“Singh is a habitual stealer. He was involved in some petty thefts in 2000. He then gave up stealing for some time. But in 2008, a Bollywood flick on escapades of a thief Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye! inspired him to foray into the world of crime again. Since then, there was no looking back,” said SHO Chibbar.

“He used to target houses of working couples. He would select a house during his duty hours and carry out the burglary the very next day.

He used to steal valuables — cash, jewellery etc,” said Patiala SSP Gurmeet Chauhan.
Sources said during his three-year stay in Rajpura, he committed around a dozen thefts in and around the town. “Once during a visit to his in-laws’ house in Ambala, he sneaked out to steal a revolver from a neighbour’s house,” they said.
The police said Singh used to gift valuables, especially gold ornaments, to his wife. “Of late, he had started showing interest in commercial property and was planning to buy a showroom,” said the SSP.  The police are also planning to attach his properties which can be auctioned as per law.
A case under sections 454, 380 of the IPC and sections 22,61, 85 of the NDPS Act have been registered against him. The police said the accused is being questioned to ascertain if there was some gang involved with him.