Two youths enter a luxury hotel in Gurgaon, steal jewellery worth Rs 70 lakh!

In one of the most shocking heists in recent times, two thieves allegedly switched a bag containing jewellery worth at least Rs 70 lakh from the banquet of a five-star hotel in Gurgaon late Saturday night. The incident took place between 12.30 am and 1 am, with the duo escaping unchallenged.

The thieves, believed to be in their early twenties, escaped without anyone at the wedding party even realising what had happened. The incident took place at The Leela, in the Pearl Ballroom of the hotel where a wedding ceremony was taking place.

“I was sitting with a bag that had at least six gold sets, a few diamond bangles and other jewellery. The jewellery belonged to my sister and my niece. The sagans that came were also in the bag,” said Bhushan Sahwney, who lodged a complaint with the Gurgaon Police DLF Phase 2.

Sahwney told the police that he was sitting with the bag all the time. It was only for a few seconds that he had left it unattended to fetch something, when the two youths struck. They switched the bag and escaped from the main door, he said. The whole operation took not more than five to seven minutes.

The CCTV footage in the ballroom showed the two youths sitting at a little distance and observing the bag. The duo had entered through the main gate, which, shockingly, has no cameras.

"Most of the cameras in the hotel are not functional and the ones that are, are at such a height that no details can be made out. They capture only broad movements. The CCTV covering the main area from where the baraat had entered was also non-functional," Sahwney said.

According to the complainant, one of the suspects was wearing a black Jawahar suit and the other a simple tailored suit. “The moment they fled with the bag, we raised an alarm but the hotel staff convinced us that they will find the thief. Meanwhile, the thieves escaped. It all happened within five to seven minutes,” he added.

Gurgaon Police was unavailable for comment.