Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
Tags:
Journalism of Courage
Earlier this year, a Delhi Police head constable lost Rs 70 lakh on a gaming app. To recoup his losses, he allegedly devised a plan to steal money from the ‘malkhana’ (store room) of the force’s elite unit — the Special Cell — in Lodhi Colony, where he had been posted for a year.
The policeman, Khurshid, allegedly burgled the storeroom not once, but twice in May — but a slip-up during the second theft eventually led to his exposure and arrest. Police said he stole Rs 51 lakh and two boxes of gold.
These details are part of the Delhi Police’s chargesheet, running over 130 pages and naming 11 witnesses, recently filed in a city court.
“The motive behind stealing the cash and gold was to repay a debt. Khurshid had lost around Rs 70 lakh in online gaming and betting, and in an attempt to recover the losses, he hatched a plan to commit the theft,” the police stated in the chargesheet.
According to police, Khurshid was the malkhana in-charge with the Special Cell. After the first theft, he requested a transfer and was moved out of the unit.
“Khurshid had picked up some cash and jewellery before being transferred to the Northeast district on May 24. When he committed the theft [for the second time] on May 31, he was caught,” an officer said, citing the chargesheet.
He was identified using CCTV footage recovered from the premises.
Although the Special Cell office shifted to Sadiq Nagar last November, as the Lodhi Colony premises was closed for renovation, the malkhana — housing large amounts of sensitive material linked to critical cases — continued to operate from the old compound.
The facility was under surveillance by the Nagaland Police personnel. A duty officer recorded the details of everyone entering the complex, while another officer conducted a final check before allowing access to the high-security area.
But, police said, Khurshid was familiar with the system as he had worked there. Security staff knew him and were unaware that he had already been transferred.
Using this to his advantage, police had said, Khurshid entered the premises at 4 am on May 31. He was in the store room for around half an hour. At 4.30 am, he came out with two boxes of gold jewellery and a bag full of money. At the time, the duty officer was allegedly asleep.
Khurshid, however, made the mistake of leaving the malkhana door open. The duty officer noticed this when he woke up, and sounded an alarm.
“As he was posted in the malkhana earlier, he made a duplicate set of keys to enter the room. Because of that, there were no signs or sounds of entry. He entered, wearing a helmet and gloves to hide his identity, and then came out. However, he left the door open, which started our investigation,” the officer said.
An FIR was lodged the same day, and Khurshid was arrested from his residence in Northeast Delhi. The case was investigated by the Special Cell.
Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram
