2 arrested for duping Noida residents at ATMs

Noida: Two people, who used to allegedly dupe Noida and Greater Noida residents after exchanging their ATM cards on the pretext of helping them, were arrested on Friday morning following a gunfight, Noida police said.

Police identified the suspects with single names as Hanif, 32, and Shakeel, 25, both residents of Palwal, Haryana.

“On Friday morning, when a police team was checking near Sector 82 cut under the jurisdiction of Phase 2 police station, two men were spotted moving on a motorcycle without bearing any registration number. When police tried to stop the suspect, they managed to escape in another direction,” said Shakti Mohan Avasthy, deputy commissioner of police, Central Noida.

“As police chased them, they left the motorcycle and fired at police. In retaliatory fire, they sustained bullet injuries to their legs and were rushed to a nearby hospital,” the DCP added.

During investigation, the suspects purportedly revealed their modus operandi of the last few months. “The suspects used to lay a trap outside the ATM machines. Just as they would observe that any ATM card holder was encountering difficulty in withdrawing cash, they used to note down the ATM pin secretly and exchange the ATM card on the pretext of help. Later, they used to withdraw cash from a nearby ATM and flee the spot,” said DCP Avasthy.

Six cases of theft and a cheating case were already registered against Hanif at various police stations in the Gautam Budh Nagar district, and a case of theft and the Arms Act was registered against Shakeel. “We have recovered 26 ATM cards of different banks, two illegal country made pistols and a motorcycle from their possession,” the officer added.