Woman poses as doc to steal jewellery, held

A 43-year-old woman has been arrested for disguising as a doctor and stealing jewellery from hostel rooms at the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), the police said on Friday.

They said the accused, a Ghaziabad resident, who holds a diploma in medical laboratory technology and a Bachelor's degree in science, and has worked as a lab assistant at a private hospital, was arrested on Thursday.

The woman, wearing a doctor's coat to blend in, took advantage of the lax security and unlocked doors at the AIIMS hostel, they said.

In a statement, Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) Ankit Chauhan said: “She used a doctor's coat to move around the AIIMS campus without arousing suspicion and targeted hostel rooms whose doors were often left unlocked."

Chauhan said the Hauz Khas police registered a case under Section 305 (theft) of the BNS on March 27, based on a doctor's complaint.

The complainant reported the theft of two gold chains, a gold bracelet, gold ring, a pair of gold earrings, Rs 20,000 and 700 Malaysian Ringgit from the hostel room.

The police analysed footage from around 100 CCTVs on the AIIMS campus. It showed a woman in a doctor's coat trying to access various hostel rooms during odd hours.

After technical surveillance, the police identified the scooter used by the woman. Based on the vehicle's registration details, they raided her residence at Brij Vihar in Ghaziabad and apprehended her, the DCP said.

He said the police had recovered the stolen jewellery, Rs 4,500, 522 Malaysian Ringgit and the scooter from her possession.