The case has now been transferred to the Crime Branch, days after the fake oxygen cylinder racket in Khan Market was busted. The Delhi police had previously looked into the matter. This comes a day after the Delhi Police arrested several people in connection with an investigation into the seizure of over 500 fake oxygen concentrators from popular restaurants in the national capital over the last two days.
The Delhi Police seized 532 fire extinguisher iron gas cylinders of various sizes, 26 oxygen gas cylinder nozzles, two electric grinders used to remove the red paint from the cylinders, three silver spray paint cans, one black paint box, one paintbrush, and one pipe wrench on Thursday.
During the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the police had also registered over 300 cases of cheating, black-marketing, or hoarding of oxygen cylinders and medical equipment. According to Chinmoy Biswal, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Delhi Police, a total of 303 FIRs have been filed in connection with such incidents.
Further Delhi Police Raids
The Delhi Police said on Friday that they raided two upscale restaurants and discovered 105 more of these machines, which are used in the treatment of COVID patients. 96 oxygen concentrators were seized from Khan Chacha Restaurant and nine were seized from Town Hall Restaurant, both in the Khan Market area, according to the police. Over 100 oxygen concentrators were recovered after four men, Gaurav, Satish Sethi, Vikrant, and Hitesh, were arrested on Wednesday from a restaurant-cum-bar in south Delhi’s Lodhi Colony area for allegedly hoarding and black marketing oxygen concentrators, police said.
The police discovered 419 oxygen concentrators that were meant to be sold on the black market after the four men were apprehended. According to a senior police officer, the accused were brought before a court and granted one-day police custody.
“During interrogation, Hitesh had disclosed that they had stored some more oxygen concentrators at restaurants situated in the Khan Market area, following which a police team conducted a raid on Thursday night at Townhall Restaurant and recovered nine oxygen concentrators.
“The accused also told the police that more oxygen concentrators had been kept at Khan Chacha restaurant. The team conducted another raid and recovered 96 concentrators from Khan Chacha restaurant. With this, a total of 524 oxygen concentrators have been recovered so far,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (south) Atul Kumar Thakur said.
