New Delhi, Aug 16 (IANS): After multiple raids in the national capital and western Uttar Pradesh, Delhi Police have arrested three criminals who targeted shops and offices for armed robberies, an official said on Wednesday.

The accused were identified as Mohd Kasim (65), Iliyas (47), and Shamim (41).

According to the police, the Keshav Puram police station received a PCR call on August 7 regarding a roberry at a Patanjali mega store.

The complainant, Desu Kuswaha told the police that at around 3.10 p.m. on the day while he and his colleagues were in the store, four individuals wearing helmets entered and stole the cash at gunpoint.

The robbers also took four packets ghee weighing 1 kg each and fled.

During investigation, the teams scanned more than 200 CCTV cameras spanning from Keshav Puram to Greater Noida.

“The team zeroed in on the location of suspects in Morna village, Noida. The efforts bore fruits when the hideout of the suspects was identified and the accused were nabbed from various places in Delhi and western Uttar Pradesh,” said the Deputy Commissioner of Police (northwest) Jitendra Kumar Meena.

“Four firearms with 22 live cartridges, cash, documents, and a ghee packet were recovered from their possession."

Giving details about the modus operandi of the accused, the DCP said that the gang used to target offices, shops, stores so that the victims' voice could not be heard outside.

“They used to wear helmets to hide their identities. They used stolen vehicles to commit robberies and also carried loaded weapons to kill, in case someone resists.

“The gang used to leave the area within minutes after committing the crime and travel to faraway places like Noida. It was also was learnt that they were committing robberies at the interval of two to three days in various parts of Delhi,” said the DCP.