The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Swanky, sprawling mall shoppers new targets for offenders Law and order

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Saturday, Mar 22, 2008
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Swanky, sprawling mall shoppers new targets for offenders Law and order

After shopping, people, especially
lone women and elders, should ensure that their belongings are kept safely, writes
L. Srikrishna

The increasing number of swanky and sprawling shopping malls and multi-storeyed commercial complexes in the city may augur well for shoppers, but it is causing concern to the custodians of the law.

Such shopping facilities, particularly in busy areas, that attract thousands of footfalls are increasingly becoming the “most preferred destinations” for various types of law offenders, police say.

Youth, many of them educated and well dressed, indulge in eve-teasing, bag lifting, chain-natching and other offences.

Often the culprits target lone women or senior citizens coming out of the malls, particularly during late evenings, and decamp with valuables.

Their modus operandi is to brandish some weapons and forcibly take away any valuable in possession of the victim. “It can be a mobile phone, wallet, gold chain or a carrybag containing the items bought from the mall or complexes,” a senior police officer said.

According to police officers, women waiting to board autorickshaws or take other means of transports near outside the shopping complexes also fall prey to the tactics of diverting their attention employed by the thieves.

Recently, a young woman who came out of a shopping centre that opened recently in T.Nagar lost her jewellery bag. The victim in her complaint said that a well dressed young woman stopped her and to ask about her shopping experience at the centre.

Within a few minutes, the thief whisked away her bag containing valuables. Police officers feel that it could be the handiwork of a first-time offender.

In another case recently, a young woman boarded an MTC bus from LIC bus stop to Vadapalani after withdrawing cash from an ATM located in a shopping centre nearby.

The next day, the woman received an SMS alert from her bank, stating that she had purchased goods valued at Rs 62,000 from two merchant establishments. To her shock, only then did she realise that her cards were missing.

An officer investigating crime cases in Triplicane area said that two-wheelers parked outside shopping centres or in the adjacent bylanes also went missing. Strangers who watched people coming to the shopping centres shadowed them discreetly and after estimating the time likely to be spent by them in the shopping facilities, the thieves stole the two-wheelers.

Recently, a special team of police officers secured a three-member gang and found that they were first-time offenders. Police have seized seven two-wheelers, an officer said.

A senior police officer said that public would be safe inside a mall or commercial complex as surveillance cameras were fitted and sufficient security guards posted, but it is not the case when they come out.

After shopping, people, especially lone women and elders, should ensure that their belongings are kept safely and avoid interactions with strangers, he added.

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