New Delhi, Jul 17 (PTI) A 26-year-old man, allegedly involved in a series of gold chain snatching incidents, was arrested after a team of 146 armed police personnel were deployed to trap the accused, police said today.

With his arrest, the police claimed to have worked out 23 cases of gold chain snatching in south Delhi.

The accused, identified as Vineet Verma, is a resident of Ghaziabad. One firearm with two live cartridges, seven snatched gold chains and a stolen motorcycle used in commission of crime was recovered from his possession, Romil Baaniya, Deputy Commissioner of Police (south) said.

Based on incidents of chain snatching since March 3, a trap was laid. These incidents of chain snatching were reported from specific areas of south Delhi which included Malviya Nagar, Saket, Mehrauli, Fatehpur Beri and Neb Sarai, Baaniya said.

The first incident of chain snatching was reported on March 3, near CGHS dispensary, in front of Shivalik Market in Saket.

On examining such incidents, the police observed that a white colour TVS Apache motorcycle driven by two helmet wearing suspects was the common link between them.

Various CCTV footages were also scanned to establish the identity of the robbers and the same vehicle with different number plates was used in commission of crime in these specific areas, the DCP said.

The suspects usually targeted residential colonies and even followed identical routes while traversing south Delhi areas, the officer said.

Based on these conclusions, a team consisting of 146 police personnel was formed.

On July 11, a police team deployed at Mehrauli spotted the suspects on the same bike at 8 am in Chhatarpura.

Subsequently, the police team chased them secretly. One of the two accused persons was arrested following an encounter with the police team.

The accused who managed to flee was identified as Amit and had recently come out of jail on parole on the ground of getting his wife treated for an ailment, the DCP said.

During interrogation, Verma disclosed that he along with his associate Amit used to snatch chains in areas of south Delhi, southeast Delhi, Dwarka and Rohini. They always carried a loaded weapon to instil fear on their targets if they resisted, he added.

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