Sahjad (33) and Danish (23), natives of Uttarakhand, who escaped to Ajmer Sharif Dargah, Rajasthan, after committing dacoities in Aluva, Kerala and tried to flee by firing arms at the police there, were brought to Aluva and taken for collecting evidence. They stole gold ornaments and money from vacant houses in Aluva and decamped with 38 sovereigns of gold and Rs 33,000 in cash.

HinduPost reported in late February that two thieves opened fire on the Kerala Police officials who went to Ajmer to investigate a robbery case. The incident took place inside Ajmer Sharif Dargah, Rajasthan. Following the altercation, Sharan Kamale Gopinath, an IPS officer from Ajmer, was injured. 

Ernakulam District Police Chief Dr. Vaibhav Saxena IPS (a 2016 Kerala cadre IPS officer from Lucknow) is supervising the case and collecting evidence. The accused described their modus operandi for theft and how they escaped from Kerala.

Sajad is driving an autorickshaw in Rampur, Dehradun Uttarakhand. Danish, a labourer, also came to work in Kerala during the 2018 floods. Danish, who returned home, informed Sajad that Keralites keep gold ornaments in their houses. Later, the two arrived together and planned robberies.

The duo bought two guns from Bihar for twenty-two thousand rupees. On February 5th, they boarded a train from Delhi to Aluva. Upon reaching Aluva on the 8th, the dacoits checked into a lodge. The next day, they vacated the room during the day.

They searched for unoccupied houses that were locked from the outside. Meanwhile, the gang also stole a motorcycle from a playground in Mudikkal, Aluva and moved around in that vehicle.

At night, they zeroed in on a house in Kuttamassery, Aluva. They stole the house by opening the lock with a few tools. (Two handguns, seven live rounds, a magazine, a niqab, and a screwdriver were found on them after the accused were apprehended from Ajmer).

The thieves abandoned the stolen bike inside the Aluva transport bus stand premises. Overnight, they stayed at another lodge in Aluva. The next day, they roamed around and robbed two more homes using just the same old simple tools.

After these thefts, the thieves reached Thrissur by bus. From there, the duo boarded a train to Madhya Pradesh, where they attempted robberies, too.

By then, a Special Investigation Team of Aluva police, which identified the accused through scientific investigation, followed them. By the time they reached Madhya Pradesh, the thieves had crossed into Rajasthan. The Kerala police team pursued.

While trying to arrest the accused, from Ajmer at night with the help of Ajmer police, the accused tried to escape by shooting at police officers. Finally, after three hours of hard work, the police overpowered the accused. The accused were remanded in Ajmer and brought to Aluva last day.

Danish is accused in around ten cases, including the Kerala Anti-Social Activities (Prevention)Act (Goonda Act), and there are cases in various states, including Kerala. They committed three thefts in Aluva and one in Perumbavoor.

DySP A Prasad, Inspector MM Manju Das, and Sub-Inspector SS Sreelal are investigating under the supervision of District Police Chief Vaibhav Saxena.