Ram Darbar man gets 5-yr jail for snatching

A local court sentenced a man to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of five years in a snatching case. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 27,000 on the convict, Sunil of Ram Darbar.

Awarding the sentence, the court observed: “Snatching is one of the biggest street crimes which has created an element of fear and trauma in the mind of people, especially women and senior citizens. Snatching cases are being reported almost every day. Showing leniency in such cases is nothing but encouraging the culprit.”

On a complaint of Kulwinder Lal, who lived at Deep Complex, Hallomajra, and worked as a mechanic in Sector 19, Panchkula, a case was registered under Sections 379-A and 411 of the IPC at the Sector 31 police station on April 19, 2022.

The complainant had stated that he was returning home after having dinner at a dhaba in Ram Darbar on April 14 when near Deep Complex, two persons, aged about 20-22, snatched his phone and ran away. During investigation, the police arrested Sunil and a juvenile for the crime. The complainant identified them. A phone was recovered from them.

The police presented a challan in court and charges were framed against Sunil, to which he pleaded not guilty.

The defence counsel contended that there was inordinate delay of five days in lodging of the FIR and that the prosecution failed to prove the ownership of the phone allegedly recovered from the possession of the accused as no mobile bill had been placed on record. The public prosecutor argued that the prosecution had proved the case beyond a shadow of doubt.

After hearing the arguments, the court held Sunil guilty and pronounced the sentence.