A former Indian Army soldier, who was court-martialled and dismissed from service within a year of selection, has been arrested after 33 years for allegedly murdering a truck driver and stealing a truck loaded with copper in Old Delhi, police said on Friday.
Rajender Dagar, now 59, had been on the run since 1993 and was declared a proclaimed offender in 1994. He was finally apprehended on June 1 after a extensive manhunt that spanned decades.
Decades-Long Evasion
For 33 years, Dagar constantly changed his identities, appearances, and locations across several states, making it extremely difficult for investigators to track him down. Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Sanjeev Kumar Yadav noted that the team successfully tracked the fugitive despite the absence of digital records, modern surveillance tools, and original case documents from the early 1990s.
The Crime
The case dates back to June 15, 1993, when truck driver Ram Singh from Rajasthan's Jhunjhunu district was allegedly murdered at a hotel in the Lahori Gate area of Old Delhi. According to police, Dagar and his associates poisoned Singh to steal his truck, which was carrying a consignment of copper belonging to a company. Dagar targeted Singh because he was familiar with his route and the nature of the cargo.
An FIR was registered at Lahori Gate police station on June 17, 1993. Singh was last seen in Dagar's company, but before investigators could close in, Dagar disappeared and remained at large for over three decades.
Investigation and Breakthrough
The lack of leads put immense pressure on the investigating team. Officers revisited court records, examined old case files, and studied Dagar's criminal background in detail. They found references to similar crimes involving cheating truck drivers, stealing loaded vehicles, and misappropriating valuable consignments. Investigators believed these patterns could help them understand his movements and habits.
The team then focused on Dagar's native village in Jhunjhunu, Rajasthan. Officers discreetly gathered information about his family members and conducted repeated field visits over several months. This led to the information that Dagar was alive and often visited his village, though he remained extremely cautious and avoided prolonged stays.
The breakthrough came when a suspicious mobile phone number surfaced during surveillance. The number remained switched off most of the time, but whenever it became active, its location was traced to different hotels and guest houses across various cities. The pattern suggested that Dagar was leading an itinerant lifestyle, frequently changing his place of stay.
Acting on a specific lead, the team reached Narnaul in Haryana. Police searched around 15 hotels and guest houses before finally locating Dagar at one of the establishments, where he was staying under a false identity. After confirming his identity, the team apprehended him on June 1, ending a manhunt that had lasted more than three decades.
Confession and Background
During interrogation, Dagar initially attempted to conceal his identity but later confessed to his involvement in Singh's murder. He revealed that he knew Singh and was aware that he regularly transported copper consignments from Rajasthan to Delhi. After committing the crime, he fled Delhi and spent the next several years moving from one place to another.
Dagar spent a considerable period in Mumbai, where he worked at bars and even sold vada pav to earn a livelihood. For nearly two years, he worked at a casino in Goa. Throughout this time, he adopted different identities and altered his appearance, at one stage keeping long hair tied in a ponytail.
Dagar has a chequered past marked by a brief stint in the armed forces and a long history of criminal activity. He was selected for the Indian Army in 1984 but was court-martialled and dismissed from service within a year. Investigators believe his dismissal marked the beginning of a life that eventually led him into a series of criminal offences across multiple states.
According to police records, Dagar's modus operandi often involved befriending or deceiving truck drivers before stealing vehicles loaded with valuable consignments. He was previously booked at police stations in Kashmere Gate and Mayapuri in Delhi as well as Alwar in Rajasthan.
