Noida: A gang that honeytrapped people by inviting them to isolated locations for dates and then robbed them of cash and valuables was busted, police said, adding that five persons were arrested. Among the accused are two women and a minor, who has been detained.According to police, the gang ran a fake “friendship club” online to target people and choose their potential victims. They would strike up a conversation on social media messaging apps to gain their trust and obtain their phone numbers. Once a victim agreed to meet, the accused called them to secluded areas across Noida, Delhi and other parts of the NCR.Additional DCP Manisha Singh said the gang operated using two cars. In the first vehicle, a woman from the gang, accompanied by two other associates, would meet the victim. The second car, carrying other gang members, would remain parked nearby. At the chosen spot, the remaining accused would arrive, assault and threaten the victim.They would force the victims to unlock their phones and transfer their money into multiple accounts controlled by the gang. The accused would then flee with the victims’ phones, identity documents and even their vehicles, making it difficult for them to contact police immediately.On Saturday, police arrested the six persons from Khelgaon Park in Sector 54 following a tip-off. The accused, Omveer Yadav, Priyanka Yadav, Manjesh Yadav, Riya Yadav and Nidhi Yadav, are all between 19 and 27 years of age.During interrogation, Omveer also confessed to robbing a man near a petrol pump in Sector 54 on Tuesday night. Police said the gang took Rs 1.8 lakh from him and the Toyota Fortuner that he was driving.The stolen Fortuner, along with a Swift and an Aura that were used in the crimes previously, were recovered after the six were arrested. A knife used in the offences was also seized.A case has been registered and investigators are trying to establish how many incidents the gang was involved in. Investigation is also on to check whether the gang has other members who have not been arrested yet and to unravel the full extent of the racket.Authorities noted that many similar honeytrap-based robberies involving fake online friendships and dating platforms have been reported in Noida over the past two years, highlighting a recurring pattern of cyber-enabled organised crime in the region.In April, four men were arrested for faking their identities and robbing several people they met on a dating app. A similar case was reported in March too, for which three men were arrested. They used a car without a number plate to carry out their robberies to avoid detection.
