Delhi cash collector stages Rs 30 lakh fake robbery, arrested with associate

A 24-year-old cash collection employee in Delhi allegedly staged a fake robbery of Rs 30 lakh collected for his employer, but the plan unravelled after CCTV footage and other evidence did not match his version, police said on Saturday.

Police said the employee, Parveen Malhotra, and his alleged associate, Parveen alias Prem, have been arrested. The entire Rs 30 lakh has been recovered, along with the cash bag and the motorcycle used in the incident.

According to police, Malhotra worked as a cash collection employee at Madan Lal Plastic in Tikri Kalan. On October 1, he had collected Rs 30 lakh from three locations on his employer’s instructions.

While returning on his motorcycle, he allegedly told police that three men on a black motorcycle stopped him near Zakhira Flyover, snatched his cash bag and injured him in the chest with a blade.

A PCR call about the alleged robbery was received at Moti Nagar police station on October 2, after which a police team reached the spot and recorded Malhotra’s statement. A case was registered. During the investigation, police found discrepancies in his account.

They said his shirt did not have a matching cut despite the alleged chest injury, and CCTV footage from the location and time mentioned by him did not support his claim.

Police said further checks on his route and inconsistencies in his statements raised suspicion, after which he was questioned in detail. During interrogation, Malhotra allegedly told police that he had planned the robbery to keep the Rs 30 lakh.

He handed over the cash bag to his friend Prem at Keshav Puram Metro Station before injuring himself with a razor blade. He also allegedly damaged and threw away his mobile phone near Peeragarhi Metro Station to destroy evidence, police said.

Acting on the information provided by him, police raided Prem’s house in Bahadurgarh, Haryana, and recovered the entire Rs 30 lakh.

The motorcycle allegedly used by Malhotra was also recovered, police said. Malhotra, a resident of Paschim Vihar and originally from Alwar in Rajasthan, is 24, while Prem, 23, lives in Bahadurgarh and is alleged to be his associate. Further investigation is underway.

Police said the case began as a robbery complaint but the investigation later found that the alleged victim himself had planned it with the help of an associate, leading to the recovery of the full amount and the arrest of both men.