Delhi: Auto driver helps catch snatchers

New Delhi: An autorickshaw driver chased and caught a youth riding on a bike after he and his accomplice had snatched the purse of an Afghan national couple travelling in his auto in Lutyen’s zone.

The autorickshaw driver, Kusheshwar Yadav, called the police and registered an FIR against the snatcher. He said that on Monday, an Afghan couple hired his auto from Karol Bagh to Lajpat Nagar. At 1 pm when the auto was passing through the Mandir Marg area near Valmiki temple, two youngsters on an Apache motorcycle snatched the purse from the Afghan woman travelling in his auto along with her husband and son. The couple shouted for help, and he started chasing bike.

His auto hit the bike which caused the rider and pillion rider to fall on the footpath. The driver then ran towards the snatchers and alerted the locals about the incident. The pillion rider had thrown the purse towards him and fled while the rider got trapped as his leg got stuck under the bike.

By the time the police reached the spot, the locals thrashed the snatcher. “The couple were returning after visiting a doctor in Karol Bagh. They were unable to speak either Hindi or English. The lady got scared and started crying after her bag was snatched as it had important documents and money. I took them to police station and helped them,” said Mr Yadav.

The police said the snatcher is identified as Salman, a resident of Daryaganj. The bike used in the crime has also been impounded. His associate who managed to flee from the spot has been identified, and will also be arrested soon.

“The Afghan’s were unable to speak Hindi or English but they conveyed their message through gestures that the auto driver helped them in getting their bag back,” said a police official.

“A FIR under IPC section (assault or criminal force in attempt to commit theft) and 379 (punishment for theft) has been launched,” said a senior police official.