The Samta Nagar police's investigations into a bike theft complaint led to the uncovering of a state-wide racket, where motorbikes were stolen from Mumbai and sold in Aurangabad.
The police have arrested two accused and seized nine stolen bikes from them. According to the Samta Nagar police, investigations were initiated in the matter after Malad resident Devidas Gawli, 45, registered a complaint with them on July 2.
Gawli had parked his bike on the service road of the Kandivali stretch of the Western Express Highway and when he came back to the spot, the bike was missing. An FIR was registered and the police started the probe.
“Our team visited the scene of the crime and scanned Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) camera footage of the theft. Using the footage as well as human intelligence, we identified and apprehended the accused,” said deputy commissioner of police (Zone XII) Somnath Gharge.
The accused – Babasaheb Kharat, 20, and Shankar Magre, 26 – allegedly confessed that they had sold Gawli's bike to a party in Aurangabad. Accordingly, after obtaining their custody from the court, the police team took them to Aurangabad and recovered the bike from the person they had sold it to.
“Further inquiries revealed that the duo had stolen and sold several more bikes in a similar manner. Based on the results of their interrogation, we have recovered eight more bikes from Buldhana and Aurangabad. Some of these had been sold, while others were hidden with the intention of sellingthem at a later date. In all, we have recovered nine stolen bikes worth Rs 2.95 lakh,” said Gharge.
The duo were working as contract workers on a daily wage basis and staying on the pavement in Dadar, while also stealing and selling bikes illegally. Inquiries are underway to find out if there are any other accused involved in the racket, police officers said.
