Tirumala police step up vigil to check chain snatchers

Time of India

18 hours ago

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Tirupati
: Tirumala police have stepped up vigil on the movement of suspects and interstate gangs following the recent arrest of a gang of chain snatchers from Maharashtra operating in the guise of devotees in the hill town.
The sacred abode of Lord Venkateswara at Tirumala, which attracts approximately 60,000-70,000 devotees during weekdays and close to 1 lakh pilgrims from across the globe during the weekends and festive occasions, is one of the major pilgrimage hotspots in the country.
With the temple open almost round the clock and jostling with pilgrims day-in and day-out, local petty criminals and gangs occasionally turn up on the hill town to try their luck and decamp with the valuables of the visiting devotees.
While the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams in coordination with the Tirumala police have been effectively dealing with the petty thefts, pickpockets and other similar offences with the help of 24/7 surveillance through the centralised command control centre, the manner in which a six member chain snatchers gang from Maharashtra operated at Tirumala in the disguise of devotees, has come as a surprise for the Tirumala police.
According to Tirumala I town CI Vijay Kumar, Arjun Lakshman Masalkar (24), Bhagwan Bapurao Gaikwad (42), Vikas Vijay Yadav (27), Ganesh Sunil Gaikwad (30), Akash Baban Gaikwad (31) and Ravi Janardhan Jadhav (38), belonging to different parts of Maharashtra, were found to be frequently travelling to Tirumala in the disguise as devotees and resorting to acts of chain snatching at high pilgrim congregation points on the hill town.
"This gang targeted a lonely woman devotee from Hyderabad near Pilgrim amenities complex-3 at Tirumala in June this year and decamped with her gold chain. A month later on July 26th, the same gang used a cutter to cut the chain from the neck of a woman devotee from Krishnagiri near the silver gate entrance inside the Tirumala temple," the CI stated.
After receiving complaints from the two woman devotees, the Tirumala police meticulously analysed all available CCTV footage and apprehended all the six accused near the Outer Ring Road at Tirumala in the first week of August.
Police recovered approximately 87 grams of gold chains worth approximately Rs.8 lakh from the possession of the accused. The SUV used by the gang to frequent to Tirumala from Maharashtra was also seized by the police.
According to Tirumala I town CI, the Maharashtrian gang had a prolonged criminal history and were involved in multiple chain snatching and rioting incidents back in Maharashtra and in other states.
With the Maharashtrian gang now behind the bars, the Tirumala police who have stepped up vigil on the hill town, have appealed to the devotees visiting the hill town for a pilgrimage to be extremely cautious especially when they are at high pilgrim congregation points at Tirumala.
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