When they set out hunting for a scooter that was stolen from their limits, the Ambalamedu police never imagined that they would chance upon a juvenile gang of four who steals motorcycles just to enjoy the high of riding them around.
It all started with a complaint of a missing scooter lodged with the police on Wednesday evening. Just hours later on Thursday morning, a police team came across that very scooter with three youngsters having a joyride on it.
The scared band of friends without much prompting ‘betrayed’ another missing accomplice who was summoned after the police informed his parents. Shortly, there unfurled the story of a stealing spree of two-wheelers that pretty much left the police stumped.
In fact, two of them were accused in similar cases in the past. They confessed to have stolen five vehicles, including the one, riding which they were caught, from places falling within four police station limits. While two vehicles were from the Ambalamedu police station limits, one each was stolen from Pattimattom, Aluva, and Thripunithura.
Except for one two-wheeler, which was, much to their delight, found with the key left on it, they employed an ingenious ‘wire work’ to start and rode away the other four. And, all of them were recovered from places where they said to have dumped them.
“The youngsters had no other motive behind the thefts but were simply driven by the craze for riding motorcycles. They dumped them either when the vehicles developed some complaint or the fuel dried up,” said P.P. Justin, sub inspector, Ambalamedu. Though the gang confessed to have stolen another three vehicles, the police could neither track any missing vehicle complaint nor could they recover those vehicles.
Since the police were hardly expecting the accused to be juvenile, they had registered a First Information Report invoking IPC Sections 379 (theft) and Section 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention).
However, now that they have emerged to be too young to be subjected to the quantum of punishment for their crimes as specified in the IPC, they will have to undergo punishment as laid down in the Juvenile Justice Act.