New Delhi:
Delhi Police on Saturday evening arrested two chain robbers who targeted a jogger at Nehru Park in the national capital's Chanakyapuri area. The thieves pulled out a gun and threatened to shoot if the man did not give away his gold chain. The two broke the chain and tried to run to the entrance gate.
Little did they know that the man they were targeting was none other than Vinod Badola, an 'encounter specialist' in the Special Cell of the Delhi Police, who was also skilled in the martial arts of Krav Maga.
Mr Badola chased the two thieves and disarmed the one with the gun after a violent altercation. The second suspect managed to escape, according to the FIR. Mr Badola then called 911 and informed the PCR. With the help of local police, he continued the search for the second suspect. The criminal tried to escape by blending in with the crowd and sitting near a fountain. However, he was located and caught.
DCP (New Delhi) Devesh Mahla told The Times of India (TOI) that the two thieves were identified as Gaurav and Pawan Dev. Both have been charged under section with theft with intent to cause death. The police have collected CCTV footage from the area and have increased patrols at the scene.
Vinod Badola has led numerous high-profile missions. In October 2013, he and his team found gangster Nitu Dabodia and shot him during an encounter near a hotel in south Delhi's Vasant Kunj.
Mr Badola subsequently participated in other counter-terrorism operations, one of which earned him the Union Home Minister's Special Operations Medal.
Mr Badola and his team have discovered a new method used by a Taliban-backed group to smuggle narcotics into India. They discovered that gang members traveled overland from Afghanistan through Iran before sailing to ports in western India. About 330 kilos of heroin worth ₹1,320 crore was recovered. At the time, this seizure was the largest in the history of the Delhi Police.