History-sheeter who sabotaged train signal boxes to rob passengers nabbed in Karnataka

BENGALURU: A notorious history-sheeter who randomly sabotaged the train signalling system at a few spots in the Bengaluru Railway Division, in order to rob passengers when the train stopped, was caught red-handed by the Railway Protection Force on Monday.

The 25-year-old was nabbed when he was heading towards a signal box with a pair of cutting pliers at 1.45 am on January 18, a highly-placed railway source said. He was caught between Arasikere and Gubbi railway stations.

The source said a special force was formed after four incidents of theft on trains were reported along the Arasikere-Tumakuru stretch in the past three months.

"It was later learnt that signal boxes were tampered with late at night, forcing trains to stop at isolated spots near the home signal. Belongings of passengers were reported missing after the train resumed its trip, following restoration of the signalling system," the source added.

When the force nabbed him, the miscreant, who has a history of petty crimes, had on hand two mobile phones, one of which was a hi-end phone, stolen from a passenger recently. The pair of cutting pliers was also seized from him.

"Ön interrogation, he confessed that he had been operating on his own. He followed the same modus operandi for a few months, using the cover of darkness in isolated areas in the middle of the tracks to rob sleeping passengers as well as steal luggage,"the source said.

The man was earlier arrested by the Government Railway Police (GRP) at Yesvantpur and the local police at Sunkadakatte in Bengaluru for other thefts.

He was arrested after cases were booked against him under the Railways Act under the following sections: 147 (entry into a railway property without authorisation which is punishable up to six months imprisonment) and 174 (tampering with hosepipe or signalling system which is punishable with 2 years imprisonment).

The GRP in Yesvantpur is conducting further investigations.