Two unidentified men snatched a 41-year-old dairy shop owner’s car at gunpoint when he had stopped in Sector 46 around 11.30 pm on Thursday.
The incident took place right in front of the police beat box in the sector although it was unmanned at the time. When questioned, police officials said there were no personnel there at the time of the incident as the shift had ended at 11 pm.
The victim, Mohan, a resident of Burail village in Sector 45, said he was sitting in his car when the two men approached it on foot from either side. One allegedly pointed a gun at the car window, while the other entered through the passenger-side door and demanded the vehicle.
Mohan told police that he had no option but to hand over the car. He was not injured in the incident.
After the accused drove away, Mohan stopped another car and pursued them till Sector 45, but the two managed to escape.
Police said closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera footage showed that the accused had escaped the city through the Maloya village side and headed towards Punjab. Officials said the delay in receiving the call about the incident prevented them from sealing the borders in time.
A case under the Arms Act and Section 309(4) (robbery) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) has been registered at the Sector 34 police station.
In a similar incident last month, on September 11, a man’s Honda City was allegedly robbed near Rajiv Vihar in Manimajra. Six accused were involved in the case, and those arrested were drug addicts.