During interrogation, Shimpi confessed to his involvement in theft of mobile phones from public places.(Representational Image)
A textile factory worker from Maharashtra who allegedly lost his job after the factory shut down three years ago, was arrested in Surat for stealing mobile phones from people at public places. Police also recovered 21 mobile phones worth Rs 1.93 lakh from his custody.
According to police, there was a rise in theft incidents from railway station and state transport bus depot in Mahidharpura area. From the CCTV footages, police zeroed in on a suspect. Later, a team was deployed at the bus depot that spotted the suspect, Rahul Shimpi (45), and caught him.
During interrogation, Shimpi confessed to his involvement in theft of mobile phones from public places.
The team searched his room in the hotel near railway station and recovered 21 mobile phones worth Rs 1.93 lakh. Shimpi, a resident of Kalyan West in Thane district of Maharashtra, has two wives and five children, police said.
In his statement, Shimpi said that he was working in a textile factory in Mumbai that was shut down three years ago, rendering him jobless.
Later, he came in contact with local youths who were involved in stealing mobile phones and joined their gang. He started his mobile theft in Kalyan and Mumbai before leaving the gang and shifting his base to Surat.