Former bus driver arrested for robbery

NEW DELHI - A former bus driver was arrested for allegedly stealing jewellery worth Rs.20 lakh from an engineer’s house, police said Thursday.

Jitender Kumar had developed a strong bond with the family of Deepak Dahiya, an electrical engineer working with National Thermal Power Corporation.

“Kumar, a driver of the Blueline bus in which Dahiya’s wife commuted, had helped her on more than one occasion when she fainted due to illness. He even took her to Moolchand hospital on some occasions and won the trust of the family to the extent that Dahiya stood surety for Kumar when he was accused in a accident,” a police official said.

Kumar, taking advantage of his closeness to the Dahiya family, stole the keys of their house from Dahiya’s car last month and changed the locks before replacing the the keys.

“When Dahiya and his wife Nirmala were away in Rohini to the site of their under-construction house Jan 14, Kumar allegedly entered their house and stole diamonds, silver items and a laptop,” the official said.

According to police, the crime scene suggested that the crime was committed by someone close to the family and who had a thorough knowledge of the house, location of the keys and household articles including jewellery. Therefore Kumar was questioned and confessed to the theft.