Five engineering students held for bus heist

BHUBANESWAR: In a disturbing trend, an increasing number of engineering students is taking to crime. Police have arrested five students of a private engineering college on the charge of committing dacoity in a passenger bus at Baramunda Bus Stand about a week ago. The cash the students had allegedly snatched from the passengers __ about ` 6,400 __ along with three mobile phone handsets were also seized from them. The five were identified as Siddharth Shankar Patnaik, Priyabrata Panda, Dipti Ranjan Sahoo, Gyanaranjan Mallick and Uma Shankar Rout. They are all students of an engineering college near Barang. Except Priyabrata, the rest are teens. Police said the five were putting up at a hostel of the college at Ruchika Market. They had decided to make some quick bucks on February 27 night and went to the bus stand. They saw ‘Nila Madhab’ bus was parked and only two passengers had reported. The students reportedly barged into the bus, terrorised the passengers and bus staff with sharp weapons and decamped with the cash and mobile phones. Initially, police said the five were alcoholics, but later they found out that the accused are students. All the five have been charged with dacoity under Section 395 of the IPC. However, this is not an isolated case as growing number of students from technical institutes have been found to be resorting to criminal activities. Recently, Nayapalli Police arrested a student who had stolen laptops by conning people. When the police laid their hands on him, they managed to recover at least 38 laptops. Khandagiri Police also arrested one Bijay Angalia who led a bike-lifting gang. At least 10 bikes, stolen from different parts of the City, were recovered after his arrest. Police investigation found out that he and his gang members were highwaymen too. Quick money, drugs and alcohol addiction and flashy lifestyle are behind the engineering students committing such crimes. “With an increasing circulation of money, the students are caught in a vicious circle of greed. They want to show off trendy mobile phones, sleek bikes and latest gadgets. Since they cannot have it all from the money given by their parents, who always cannot afford it, some choose to steal it,” said a senior police officer.