Mumbai Crime Branch Busts Interstate Mobile Phone Theft Gang

Strategic Insights -

Mumbai's Crime Branch Unit 02 has achieved a major breakthrough in cracking an interstate mobile phone theft gang that has been targeting passengers on long-distance trains. The investigation, led by ACP Rajendra Ranmale, resulted in the arrest of three suspects and the recovery of 30 stolen mobile phones valued at approximately Rs 4.06 lakh. The operation was carried out under the direction of M. Rakesh Kalasagar, Commissioner of Railway Police, Mumbai.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Crime Branch Unit 02 received a complaint from 25-year-old Yashovardhan Ravishankar Verma, a resident of Malad, Mumbai, whose mobile phone was stolen from Train No. 22177, the Mahanagari Express, during its journey from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) to Banaras on January 25, 2024.
  • The trio of Shankar Nirmal Shaha (33), Dhananjay Omprakash Shukla (28), and Mohd. Afzal Zahir Ahmad Ansari (24), all residents of Madhya Pradesh, was apprehended without incident at Thane Railway Station.
  • Twenty stolen mobile phones were recovered from a backpack carried by Mohd. Afzal Ansari, valued at Rs 4,06,859, with one device confirmed to be the same handset reported missing in Verma's FIR.
  • The accused were history-sheeters with multiple mobile theft cases registered against them at various police stations in Mumbai.
  • The gang used to steal passengers' mobiles in express trains, especially at night when the passengers were sleeping, and sell them near the borders.

Statistics:

  • 30 stolen mobile phones valued at Rs 4.06 lakh were recovered from the backpack of Mohd. Afzal Ansari.
  • One of the devices was confirmed to be the same handset reported missing in Verma's FIR.
  • The accused had multiple mobile theft cases registered against them at various police stations in Mumbai.
  • The mobile phones were stolen from passengers on Train No. 22177, the Mahanagari Express, during its journey from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) to Banaras on January 25, 2024.

Sources:

  • Kamal Mishra, byline in the article.
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