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Beware, snatch thieves active, say police
Police have warned the public to be aware of snatch thieves after a string of incidents in Colombo and other areas, where mostly gold chains of women have been snatched in broad daylight.
Complaints of gangs operating in three-wheelers or motorcycles snatching chains have been on the increase with cases being reported from Dehiwala, Wellawatte, Welikada, Dematagoda, Maharagama, Mt. Lavinia, Thalangama, Pannipitiya, and Deraniyagala among other areas.
The latest detection came after a woman from Dehiwala complained that her gold chain had been snatched in the early hours recently.
Dehiwala Police Officer in Charge Upul Perera told the Sunday Times that the woman had been able to provide the number of the three-wheeler involved and they were able to arrest the suspect.
‘We checked the CCTV footage close to the location of the incident and found that a black three-wheeler had been used for the crime. The number given tallied with the number of the vehicle’, he said.
‘We traced the owner of the three-wheeler and found that a husband and wife from Grandpass were operating the racket. He had got into the business of snatching gold chains to pay the leasing instalment for the three-wheeler’, he said.
He said that man had obtained the services of a drug addict to snatch the chains and then escape in the three-wheeler.
Initial investigations have revealed that the man was involved in more than six incidents in and around Colombo. He had pawned the chains and obtained money.
The detection came after the Deraniyagala Police made another breakthrough in a similar case where the chain of a bank manageress had been snatched.
The bank manageress had fallen victim while she was returning home last week. Police said that a car driven by a woman had been parked closed to her vehicle and a man had got off the car and snatched her chain and fled.
On information received the couple had been arrested in Avissawella.
Investigations revealed that the couple were using vehicles from rent-a-car agencies by paying Rs 2,000 for a vehicle per day and were involved in snatching chains.
The woman who was reported to be having good driving skills speeds off after the man snatches the chain and gets back into the vehicle.
OIC Perera said that these gangs usually target persons who are alone and most of these crimes are carried out either in the early hours or after dusk when the roads are somewhat deserted.
‘It is best that persons avoid wearing expensive gold jewellery when they are alone or in deserted areas. They should be mindful when persons approach them to ask for directions or inquire about addresses’, he said.
He said that if a person falls victim to such a crime he/she should try to note down the vehicle or motor cycle number in which the robber is escaping.
He said in most of the cases those involved in the crime of snatching chains are those addicted to drugs and want easy cash.