GRP nabs 67-year-old Jharkhand man for burglary at Katpadi station

A 67-year-old burglar from Jharkhand was arrested by the Government Railway Police (GRP) at Katpadi railway station in Vellore for robbing long-distance travellers in express trains.

The arrested person was identified as Suman Kumar Srivastava, a native of Ranchi. Initial inquiry revealed that Srivastava reserved tickets in the air-conditioned coaches of express trains and travelled with other commuters to identify potential victims.

Police said after robbing fellow travellers, Srivastava returned to his hideout in Ranchi to safeguard the stolen valuables. After some time, he again travels in an express train to steal valuables from commuters.

Police said that GRP at Katpadi railway station had received complaints about such thefts in express trains for the past few months. Special teams analysed CCTV footage at the railway station. The team found Srivastava roaming around the railway station in a suspicious manner. The footage revealed that he got down from an express train and boarded another train when a theft incident had been reported by a passenger.

Police said that the team traced Srivastava to his hideout in Ranchi and arrested him. Police recovered 20 gold sovereigns of jewellery and ₹8 lakh in cash from him. He was lodged in Central Prison in Vellore and further probe is under way.