Biscuit bandits innovate to outsmart passengers

TO EAT OR NOT TO EAT

V Ayyappan | TNN
June 12, 2009

Chennai: The notorious biscuit bandits who thrive by duping train passengers are adopting innovative ways to trap victims. As passengers have become more aware, thanks to awareness campaigns conducted by the Railway Protection Force (RPF) and the Government Railway Police (GRP), the bandits have started employing new tactics to get the better of them.
Gone are the days when the biscuit bandits used to travel pretending to be one family carrying food laced with sedatives. Today, they function almost like a professionally managed gang. “They operate as a team. A scout walks through the coaches and identifies potential victims who display jewellery or other expensive items.
Then a crack team moves in to befriend the passenger. The culprits are usually impeccably dressed and even carry expensive items such as laptops,” an RPF official said.
“We have found that the culprits hide a small dose of drug under a fingernail and dip the finger in the tea or coffee bought from vendors. If passengers are hesitant to partake of an offering, one or two persons suddenly appear and consume the beverage bought from the same vendor to gain the confidence of passengers,” the official pointed out. At times, syringes are used to inject chemicals into water bottles of passengers when they are not around.
In the Wednesday incident, in which five persons were found unconscious in the Mumbai-Chennai Express, the biscuit bandit had approached passengers in the guise of an upper class passenger. “He managed to gain the sympathy of the victims with tales about his life and other stories. He bought them badam milk from the Cudappah railway station. The dose of the drug seems to have been quite strong because one of the victims, Venkatakrishnan, had taken only one sip from the bottle,” said a GRP official.
“We have prepared a sketch of the culprit based on inputs from the victims. He does not look like a criminal. We have transferred the case to the Cuddapah railway police. The chemical used to sedate is yet to be identified,” he added.