Robbers Return To Same House, Tell Advocate: ‘We Robbed You In March, And Here We Are Again’

A group of four masked robbers allegedly returned to the same house they had targeted in March, telling a senior advocate that they were behind the earlier burglary before forcing him and his wife at gunpoint to open their digital safes in Kurukshetra, police said.

According to a complaint filed by senior advocate Balwant Singh Walia at Thanesar City police station, the incident took place on Thursday evening. The assailants allegedly tied up the elderly couple, assaulted them and threatened to kill them if they did not hand over their valuables.

Walia told police that he had stepped out around 9.30 pm to walk his pet dog. When he returned at around 10 pm, he found his house in disarray and his wife lying face down on a bed with her hands and feet tied and adhesive tape over her mouth.

The four masked men allegedly overpowered Walia, tied him up and held the couple at gunpoint. During the robbery, they reportedly told the advocate that they were the same men who had carried out a ₹50-lakh burglary at the house on March 20.

‘We Couldn’t Open The Safes Then’

According to the complaint, the robbers claimed that they had failed to open the digital safes during the March burglary and had returned to access them.

They allegedly threatened to shoot the couple if Walia did not open the lockers. Fearing for their lives, the advocate handed over the keys and opened two digital safes.

The accused allegedly fled with ₹17-20 lakh in cash, 1.5-2 kg of gold jewellery, around 4 kg of silver ornaments, silver utensils and idols, a licensed revolver, cartridges and other valuables. The total value of the stolen property was estimated at around ₹3.15 crore.

Before leaving, the robbers allegedly damaged four CCTV cameras and took away the digital video recorder to destroy evidence.

The accused also allegedly demanded another ₹80 lakh and threatened to return and kill the couple if they informed the police.

Police Launch Manhunt

The robbers allegedly locked the main door from outside before fleeing. Neighbours later raised the alarm, reached the house and freed the couple before informing the police.

Police and forensic teams, along with senior officials, visited the scene. A case has been registered against unidentified persons under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including those relating to robbery and criminal intimidation, as well as under the Arms Act.

Thanesar City police station SHO Devender Singh said teams from the Crime Investigation Agency and local police were investigating the case and scanning CCTV footage from across the city to identify and trace the suspects. Security has also been deployed at the advocate's residence.

Police confirmed that a separate case had been registered following the alleged burglary at the same house in March and that its investigation was still underway.

Former Haryana minister and Congress MLA from Thanesar, Ashok Arora, criticised the state government's law-and-order situation following the incident and demanded immediate action against the accused.