Hyderabad Task Force Constable Heading Gang Of Thieves Arrested, Has Stuartpuram Roots

HYDERABAD: A Task Force constable working with the Hyderabad commissionerate who was operating a gang of thieves was finally arrested after two members of his gang were caught by the police. Police on Monday arrested the accused Constable named Mekala Eshwar from Serilingampally. A resident of Hafeezpet, Eshwar's native place is Stuartpuram in the Bapatla district of Andhra Pradesh. For the uninitiated Stuartpuram was a reformatory colony notorious for robbers and thieves living there. They were especially known for slipping through police custody and would come back to the colony after committing the crime. 

Eshwar’s role in this series of thefts was busted when a person had reported that his cell phone was stolen on November 11 with Nalgonda II Town police. The police arrested two people with a prior criminal record. On interrogation, the accused spilled the beans that they were working for Eshwar who was their gang leader, and under whose behest they were committing these crimes.

According to police, Eshwar had formed a group of thieves including juvenile offenders to commit thefts, chain snatching, and cell phone thefts in and around Hyderabad, Nalgonda, and Suryapet. Eshwar was kept away from police operations after superiors became suspicious of his behavior and they also received information about his activities and attached him to the Task Force Division.

Eshwar however never mended his ways. He used to help youth and minors from poor families by giving them money and bringing them to his house. He formed a gang with them and planned these thefts and was a leader of sorts for this gang. With stolen booty which he would sell and make money, he would even pay them around 40 to 50 thousand Rupees. 

If any of them were caught by the police, he get them out on bail by pretending that they were his close relatives on sympathetic grounds. Apart from this, Eshwar is also accused of giving information to interstate thieves about possible arrests and helping them escape.

The police investigation also revealed that cases of domestic violence and kidnapping were registered against him in Chirala, Begumpet, Humayun Nagar, and other police stations. As a result, he was suspended five times. But with the contacts of high-ranking officials, he would rejoin work within months. Even when the Nalgonda police arrested him, he said that he had the power to transfer officers at the level of the CI and ACP ranked officials and tried to escape from them.

Nalgonda II Town police have filed charges against Eshwar of committing theft by cheating with criminal conspiracy and using children to commit thefts under Sections 401,417,420,379,120(B) and 109 IPC & Section 83(2) and Section 87 of the JJ Act.

The police have also found out that another constable was also helping him in his crimes. As per reports, the Hyderabad police have also ordered an internal inquiry against him and higher authorities are preparing to take departmental action against both constables. (Inputs Sakshi.com)

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