Final month, the Mumbai Police Crime Division made an arrest performing on a tip which led to the invention of a total cell cellular phone theft racket and uncovered how the metropolis-essentially based courier firms and villagers along the Indo-Bangladesh border were smuggling stolen cellphones across the border. By the cease of August, the police were ready to enhance practically 800 mobiles and arrest 21 of us.
In accordance with the sources, the excessive-cease stolen telephones would in the extinguish be smuggled to countries enjoy Nepal and Bangladesh while the dilapidated ones would gain circulating in India. In June 2022, constable Sambhaji Kolekar working on the Mumbai crime department got a tip that a resident in the metropolis changed into once shopping misplaced or stolen cellphones. Subsequently, a personnel changed into once formed to ascertain how the operation changed into once working.
Earlier this year, by July 15, the personnel changed into once reportedly ready to enhance a minimal of 490 smartphones and arrest the 2 accused. Nonetheless, by the following month, the personnel would salvage recovered over 600 units and arrested 12 of us in connection with this racket. The police acknowledged that these telephones “were stolen on buses or snatched by bike-borne perpetrators”.
The prime accused and his modus operandi
One of many perpetrators arrested in August changed into once a villager from Tripura, a deliver discontinuance to the border, who told the police how the stolen telephones were smuggled into Bangladesh. In accordance with police sources, once the instrument is stolen from Mumbai its photos and basic facets are uploaded on a WhatsApp neighborhood which additionally has of us from Bangladesh and Nepal. Subsequently, the chosen telephones are then packed in boxes and despatched to Bangladesh.
In accordance with the Mumbai police, considered one of the seven gang individuals and the prime accused of the racket is Ashfaq Ahmed Abdul Aziz Sheikh. “On the surface, he changed into once a trainer at a Madarasa but in actuality, he changed into once a prime receiver of stolen telephones. He changed into once sending the telephones to Nepal and Bangladesh through his contacts,” an officer told the media.
Sheikh changed into once a segment of 43 WhatsApp groups where he auctioned the handsets to of us in Nepal and Bangladesh after altering the IMEI numbers. Reportedly, his wife and son stay in Nepal where he has a bank legend which had got Rs. 8 lakh from Nepal and Rs. 6 lakh from Bangladesh respectively, acknowledged the police. Nonetheless, he and his gang individuals additionally provided stolen cell telephones from cell snatchers who characteristic across the monetary capital.
“The boxes are then despatched to a south Mumbai-essentially based courier firm, which has an Agartala, Tripura, address. The accused would rep the expose in Agartala and sprint it throughout the porous Indo-Bangladesh border, which is roofed with jungles,” acknowledged the local police. They added that three of us that will rep these stolen telephones and sell them in Bangladesh salvage been identified.
The explanation these stolen cell telephones are sold exterior India is so that criminals carry out no longer salvage to pay money for erasing the IMEI quantity, which is traceable by law enforcement in the country. “As soon as the cellular phone goes to one other country, the IMEI quantity does no longer salvage mighty consume for law enforcement companies,” acknowledged the officer with records of the topic.
Present developments
The police salvage now managed to enhance cell telephones which are price practically a crore rupees. On the change hand, while the officers salvage identified the three culprits from Bangladesh they need further proof at hand over the case to Bangladeshi authorities for them to grasp action in opposition to those of us, acknowledged the authorities.
Within the intervening time, earlier this week, the Indian Border Safety Power (BSF) seized cellphones that were price practically Rs. 40 lakh in West Bengal’s Malda district which is a segment of the deliver that is discontinuance to the Bangladesh-India Worldwide Border (IB). Reportedly, the consignment seized on Friday had a minimal of 359 cell telephones.
The BSF intelligence had been tracking the hurry of these smugglers when the troops saw about “10 to 12 suspected smugglers shifting in direction of fencing with bundles when the capacity reached there…the smugglers fled with the attend of thick darkness and bushes. After that the jawans launched a assorted search operation, right throughout the search, eight baggage were recovered in the pit of soil discontinuance to fencing.”
The authorities with the BSF salvage indicated that the names of many Indian smugglers salvage additionally emerged and an FIR has been lodged in opposition to them on the local police set. The cell telephones salvage additionally been handed over to the police for further investigation and factual action acknowledged the BSF.
(With inputs from companies)
