In 9 months, cops track down 351 stolen mobiles; 35 held

Thane: As many as 351 missing and stolen mobile phones worth Rs 38 lakh were found in the past nine months and given back to their respective owners in an ongoing special drive launched by zone-1 of the Thane police. The cops have also arrested over 35 accused during the drive.
The drive was launched under the supervision of D S Swamy, DCP (zone-1). Swamy said, “We formed a special team with several officers. In the last three months, the police have seized 51 mobiles, collectively worth Rs 5 lakh, from various police stations and as many as six persons, all history sheeters, have been arrested. The police officials said that they managed to track down the accused through the IMEI numbers. The cops gave the IMEI numbers to all the mobile operators and asked them to inform them as soon as the stolen phone would get activated. Once the phones were switched on, the cops were informed and the team would lay a trap and arrest the accused.”

On Monday, we handed over the stolen mobiles to their respective owners.

Meanwhile, the 351 owners who finally got back their phones were a happy lot as they did not have the slightest inclination that the accused would be tracked down and arrested.