Fiver members of the notorious 'Baheliya' gang were arrested and cash worth Rs 6 lakh was seized from their possession following an encounter with the Noida police Thursday, officials said.
The gang, which has been involved in a number of robberies in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh, was busted at around 1.30 am near the Cambridge School in Sector 27, a senior official said.
Acting on a tip-off that the gang members would be coming to Noida for a major robbery, the police were on an alert and during checking, the SHO of Sector 20 police station, Manoj Kumar Pant, and his team intercepted the accused persons in a vehicle.
"When gestured to stop for enquiry, the men inside the vehicle opened fire on the police team. An encounter ensued between the two sides, after which the gang members were held," Senior Superintendent of Police Ajay Pal Sharma said.
Those arrested were identified as Shyam Singh, Kalyan Singh (both brothers), Rishipal, Parveen -- all from Amroha, and Satte, who belongs to Bijnor.
Five pistols, 20 bullets, cash worth Rs 6 lakh and a gold chain were seized from their possession while their car was impounded, he said.
The accused persons belong to the 'Baheliya' community and have no fixed base. They would set up small tents along the roadside and called them 'desi davakhanas', Sharma said.
"They would stay around 15 days in one place and then move on to another. They generally targeted areas where they have some relatives or acquaintance living, who helped them in recce of potential targets," he said.
"During the time, the gang and its associates would recce the target and local area, and in the night these men used to effect the robbery. They often barged into houses and tied up the residents, many a time brutally thrashing them up," the SSP said.
"During crime, they used to carry iron rods and batons along with country-made pistols with them," he said, adding that they operated similarly the way the 'Bawariya' gang does.
According to the police, the five accused persons tried to mislead the officials by giving wrong information.
When probed further, they admitted to having made a number of robberies in places such as Haridwar, Noida, Amroha, Bijnor, Moradabad and Ghaziabad, the police claimed.
A case under various sections of the IPC, including for robbery and attempt to murder, has been lodged while they have also been booked under provisions of the Arms Act at Sector 20 police station, according to the police.
Meanwhile, SSP Sharma said the gang was active in the city over the last fortnight and the police have stepped up vigilance on such roadside dwellers and other anti-social elements.
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