Hyderabad: The members of the ‘underwear’ dacoit gang, as they came to be known, who had been terrorising residents on the city’s outskirts and neighbouring districts with at least 20 violent robberies in the last six months, have finally been caught by the police.
The Cyberabad Special Operation Team and the Central Crime Station police arrested seven members of the gang, including a woman who used to dispose off the stolen property for the gang.
The gang members used to break into homes wearing only their undergarments. They would put on lungis after finishing the robbery to look like ordinary labourers or farmers so as not to arouse suspicion, Cyberabad police said. The gang has looted homes in different districts of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. Police seized half a kilo of gold from them
The gang, which is known as ‘Peddinti Golla’, is led by Pala Venkateswara Rao, 37. His family members and relatives are the other members of the gang.
Cyberabad commissioner of police C.V. Anand said that the main accused, Venkateswara Rao, is involved in 86 dacoity cases. The second accused, Pala Shiva, is involved in 60 cases.
“Both of them were jailed in different cases in the past. While he was in jail, Venkateswara Rao used to organise and plan dacoities with the help of his family members. Shiva escaped from police custody three times, in Warangal and Karnoon,” Mr. Anand said. The only woman member of the gang, Pala Geetha, 36, is Venkateswara Rao’s wife.
The commissioner said that the gang would plan the dacoity meticulously and used to conduct a recce of the targeted house.
“After conducting the recce, five to nine members would assemble and break open the door using boulders. They would terrorise the householders by beating them up and tying them with ropes or cloth. After looting the house, they would flee with the help of their vehicles, which they would park close by. They put on lungis to look like farmers or working class people,” said Mr. Anand.
Police said that the gang had stolen a licensed revolver from a house in Bangalore and would threaten their victims with it. The gang had targeted the house of a Telangana Rashtra Samithi politician a month ago and decamped with property after tying up the family. Police officials said more members of the gang are yet to be nabbed, and a search is on to catch them.
