Hyderabad: 92 phones worth Rs 13L seized from four gangs involved in cell phone theft

The police seized 92 cell phones and two auto-rickshaws worth Rs. 12 lakh from them. They were involved in 19 cases.

Among the arrested were Mohd Mahmood and Mohd Khan, residents of Hafeez Baba Nagar who are habitual offenders. They were released from jail a year ago and since then they had formed a gang and hired a passenger auto to commit thefts. They selected single passengers. Once the passenger boarded the auto, they diverted their attention and stole their cell phones.

Mohd Mohsin alias Chinna, a resident of Mailardevpally and a habitual offender, is the leader of another gang. Chinna has been committing offences since 2013. In 2020, he was detained under the PD Act by the Falaknuma police. He was released from jail in September 2021. After being released from jail, he along with his friend Mohd. Moosa started stealing cell phones from auto drivers. They were also picking pockets in crowded areas.

Gang three comprises Mohd Abdul Haji and Mohd. Rafeeq alias Tothu. They used to break into homes at night and steal cell phones. They then sold the stolen items at lower rates and made easy money.

In gang four, the prime accused Mohd. Mansoor and Dastigir are residents of Pahadi Shareef and are habitual offenders. In 2021, the two were arrested by the Mailardevpally police. They continued their illegal activities even after being released from jail. The duo hired an auto and started stealing cell phones from passengers. They had committed 24 cell phone thefts in the limits of various police stations in the city.

Based on credible information the commissioner's task force, south and east zone teams, along with the local police conducted raids and apprehended the accused persons. The arrested persons and seized property were handed over to the SHOs of Kanchanbagh, Chandrayanagutta , Dabeerpura and Afzalgunj police stations for further action.