New Delhi: Police had been tailing Manoj Morkheri for over five years. When they finally nabbed him after a hot chase on the streets of Delhi last month, there were broad smiles all around - not only because they had caught a wanted criminal but because they would also get to share the Rs.300,000 bounty on him. Delhi Police officers have already earned Rs.15 lakh with the arrest of 22 criminals since the year began. According to Delhi Police data accessed by a news agency, 22 criminals with a bounty on their heads have been arrested since January.
In 2012, Delhi Police officers earned around Rs.25 lakh with the arrest of 56 criminals with a bounty on their heads.
This year`s biggest success so far has been the arrest of Morkheri, following a shootout on March 20 in Alipur area on Delhi`s outskirts. Officers of the Delhi Police Crime Branch arrested Morkheri along with two of his associates, while one escaped and another was killed in the shootout.
A resident of Rohtak, Morkheri allegedly ran an organised extortionist gang and had issued abduction threats to two Delhi-based businessmen. He was wanted in cases of abduction for ransom, extortion, attempt to murder as well as the Arms Act in Delhi, Haryana and Rajasthan.
Of the 22 criminals nabbed, 12 were arrested by the Crime Branch, seven by the Special Cell, two by the district police one by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW).
Another big catch was Satender alias Kala of Sonepat, Haryana. Wanted for extortion and muder, Satender was nabbed by the Special Cell following a shootout in Rohini area of north Delhi in February. Haryana Police had announced a reward of Rs.1 lakh for his arrest.
"The reward money is equally distributed among the team of officers who nab the criminals," Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) S.B.K. Singh told IANS.
"We act on tip-offs and conduct frequent search operations to catch the criminals," Singh said.
"Last year in the same period, Delhi Police nabbed 20 such criminals," a police source said.
Delhi Police announce a reward when a criminal "goes out of reach" either by going underground or informers are unable to ferret out information about him, an officer said.
In many cases, police release sketches of the offenders to nab the criminals.
"We are proud of our officers that they show determination to nab rewarded criminals. The money is immaterial. Our main aim is to nab these criminals," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Sanjeev Kumar Yadav told IANS. IANS