Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): More than ten theft incidents have been reported from wedding ceremonies organised in the city in the past three months. The phenomenon has hinted towards the fact that marriage gardens of Bhopal are accessible not only to guests, but also to gangs who are in a bid to make off with costly valuables at such occasions.
Theft incidents during wedding ceremonies have again become a thing of discussion in the capital city, due to the presence of as many as seven inter-state gangs that target such functions, the crime branch officials said. They informed that such gangs often rope in minor children on a contract basis to commit the crime deceitfully, as they can easily dodge people’s sight and make away with costly valuables.
Senior officials of the Crime Branch said that most of the children, who have joined forces with such gangs, belong to Rajgarh district of MP. Thefts committed by such gangs have been on the rise in Bhopal from the past three months, with the onset of the wedding season. Underlining the reason behind no arrest made in such cases, officials stated that the deceitful gang members dress up as guests at such venues to execute theft, and spotting is next to impossible amidst a lot of commotion.
In addition to this, minors who have once been deployed for theft at a specific wedding function are not sent to another one, as a safety measure by gang to dodge police action, officials said.
Crime Branch sleuths had alerted marriage garden operators in December 2022, for maintaining surveillance at their wedding venues by installing CCTV cameras, in the wake of such incidents. However, it still remains an issue of grave concern, as several marriage gardens are not laced with CCTV cameras. CCTV cameras found at some of them do not function properly, making it difficult for police to get a proper glimpse of the culprits and launch probe against them.
Thieves dress up as waiters too, marriage operators alerted: Addl DCP
Additional Deputy Commissioner of police (Crime), Shailendra Singh Chouhan said that thieves with a motive to commit theft at wedding functions sometimes dress up as waiters too. He added that marriage garden operators have been advised to distribute identity cards to their staff and also ensure a proper uniform for them, to keep a check on such incidents.
