A notorious Irani gang, involved in cases of attention diversion across the country, struck the city and made away with gold ornaments worth Rs4 lakh and Rs10,000 in cash on Thursday. The gang targetted people in Vijaynagar, Hanumanthanagar and Tilaknagar.
A 65-year-old retired HAL employee running a mobile phone equipment shop in Srinivasanagar under Hanumanthanagar police station limits was the first to fall prey to the gang.
The victim, Ramaiah, was hypnotised as the culprit fled with his 70-gm gold chain, pendant and Rs10,000 cash from the shop.
The incident happened around 9.30 am when a stranger came to the shop to buy a mobile phone charger.
The item was unavailable and the man bought other equipment worth Rs90. He gave a Rs1,000 note to Ramaiah and as the shopkeeper was returning the change, the culprit struck a conversation with him.
An unsuspecting Ramaiah allowed the stranger to perform a pooja on his gold items and money. Ramaiah was unconscious for five minutes as he was hypnotised.
He found the valuables missing after gaining consciousness and filed a case with Hanumanthanagar police station.Offenders posed as cops
In two other incidents, the Irani gang posed as policemen to cheat public. Two persons diverted the attention of a 56-year-old woman and fled with 90 gm gold chain in Vijayanagar. The incident happened around 11.30 am when one of the miscreants warned Girija of chainsnatching in the area.
He suggested the women to remove her gold chain and put it in her purse. The attention-diverter helped the woman put the chain inside the purse, but fled with the valuable. Girija rushed to the police station and filed a complaint.
In another incident under Tilakanagar police station limits, a gang of two posed as cops to divert the attention of a couple on East-End Road on Thursday and made away with gold jewellery weighing 70 gm worth Rs1.40 lakh.
Rama Rathnamma and her husband, residents of Tilaknagar, filed a complaint stating that around 3.30 pm, a man posing as a cop told them that somebody was murdered a few metres away. He asked the couple to keep their gold chains inside the bag.
The couple believed the impostor as another person, believed to be the man’s associate, followed the instructions of the fake policeman.
He helped the couple put three gold chains in a bag and fled with the jewellery. A case has been registered in Tilaknagar police station. Investigation is on.
