Chandigarh: Three college students snatch car, abandon it as fuel runs out
Police have launched a manhunt for three college students who snatched an SUV near the Sector 15/16 light point in Chandigarh past Wednesday midnight.
However, the trio’s daring carjacking was cut short after the snatched vehicle’s fuel ran out, forcing them to abandon it.
According to police, the three youths, who are enrolled at DAV and SD colleges in the city, forcibly took the vehicle from Kuldeep Singh, a car delivery driver, around 1.45 am.
Singh was en route to Manali after picking up the car, a black Maruti Suzuki Jimny, from Rewari when the incident occurred.
According to Singh, the assailants approached him at the traffic signal in a Mahindra XUV 700 (HR-32K-2000). They forcibly pulled him out of the car and physically assaulted him. One of the men then drove off in his Jimny, while the other two followed in the XUV.
Singh noted the XUV’s registration number and attempted to get help from a passer-by, but the suspects managed to speed away.
Singh reported the incident to the police, who arrived at the scene. They subsequently registered a case under Sections 115 (2) (voluntarily causing hurt), 309 (4) (robbery between sunset and sunrise) and 309 (6) (voluntarily causing hurt while committing or attempting a robbery) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
Launching a probe, police traced the snatched vehicle outside Chandigarh. Without revealing the location where it was found, police said they had recovered it through technical intelligence. Through further investigation, police also rounded up one of the suspects that led to the recovery of the accused’s XUV as well.
Target driver at Sector 15/16 light point
The victim, Kuldeep Singh, a car delivery driver, told police that he had picked up the Jimny car from Dimco Auto Mobile Nexa in Rewari and was en route to Manali when he stopped at the 15/16 light point in Chandigarh.
While he was waiting for the traffic signal to turn green, a black XUV 700 approached and stopped beside him. A man exited from the driver’s seat of the XUV and signalled him to roll down his window. As soon as he complied, the man reached through the window, unlocked the door, and was soon joined by two other men who emerged from the XUV.
The three men forcefully pulled him out of his vehicle, began hitting and kicking him, and threw him onto the ground, Kuldeep alleged.
One of the attackers then took the Jimny’s driver seat, while the other two continued to assault him, before fleeing in the two cars, he alleged.
Amid the melee, the driver of a black Mahindra Thar stopped for assistance. The driver and Kuldeep tried to chase down the carjackers, but they managed to escape towards Sector 16.
