Hyderabad: The raging pandemic has not only hit lives, livelihoods and economies, but it also led to more people taking to crimes to make their both ends meet. In the last few months, several people resorted to crimes to earn money for a living, as they were left with no options.
Many resorted to smuggling contraband and cheating people after facing huge financial losses or losing jobs during the lockdown. Those working as outsourcing bank employees used their skills to con people by committing cybercrimes and those who had acquaintances among drug peddlers opted to make a few trips to earn quick bucks.
Speaking to this newspaper, one such man, who was earlier booked for theft by the Cyberabad police, said he needed money to buy monthly ration at home. “I was working at a small-time firm which fired a huge chunk of staff due to the lockdown and the situation at home went from bad to worse in the next few months in 2020. Being the only bread-winner in the family, I had to think of something as my savings were taking a hit. As my friends’ circle knew I was not employed, they refused to help me with a hand loan. I had to steal to buy ration to feed my family. I know it was wrong but I did not have a choice,” he said.
Officials from the city police said the majority of the employed sector was hit hard during the lockdown.
“We have received several such complaints about the public resorting to crimes, ranging from petty ones to cybercrimes. In some cases, even former criminals who were running businesses ran into losses and came back to committing offences to make their ends meet. However, crime cannot go unpunished, regardless of the motive,” said an official.
Earlier this month, the central zone task force team held two drug peddlers, V. Laxmi Venkata Narsimha Chary, 32, and M. Chandrasekhar, 23, who were procuring and selling hashish oil in the city. “After incurring losses in his business during the pandemic, Chary had procured the oil from his known contacts in Andhra Pradesh and had planned to make money through the illegal trade. The duo had planned to pack 5 ml of hashish oil in small bottles and sell it to customers,” said P Radha Kishan Rao, DCP of the commissioner's task force.
In yet another case, a 26-year-old man from Chandrayangutta was held for smuggling in marijuana from Visakhapatnam. “My fruit business came to a halt during the lockdown in 2020 and after I came to know that one of my acquaintances was making money by supplying ganja from Andhra Pradesh, I took up the chance and went for it. I made `60,000 in a month, which is almost double my regular salary,” he shared.
Police officials said people can always go for job melas organised by the cops and try to stay away from illegal ways of earning money. “Though it might seem like an easy way out, the law will catch up with you and the whole life will be uprooted once you have a criminal record,” said the police.
