Huge seizure of mobile phones, laptops by cops

Bengaluru, NT Bureau: I n separate cases, the city police have arrested eight accused, including four from Andhra Pradesh, for allegedly stealing mobile phones and laptops in the city.

The Upparpet police arrested three individuals hailing from Andhra Pradesh for stealing mobile phones from BMTC bus passengers in Bengaluru.

The arrested individuals were identified as Naganuri Kumar, 23, from Kurnool district, Parashuram alias Abhi, 21, from Anantapur district, and a juvenile who has been sent to an observation home.

The police have seized a total of 176 mobile phones and one car, valued at Rs 22.40 lakh, from the accused. Explaining their modus operandi, Bengaluru Police Commissioner B Dayananda said that the trio would travel from Andhra Pradesh to Bengaluru by car.

Once in Bengaluru, they would board BMTC buses disguised as regular passengers. They typically operated in busy areas like Majestic and other crowded bus stations, where they could easily blend with the crowd and steal mobile phones from unsuspecting passengers.

After stealing the phones, the accused would take them back to Andhra Pradesh, where they would erase the data of the phones and sell them at low prices.

The police crackdown was initiated following a complaint from a passenger who lost his mobile phone while traveling on a BMTC bus from Sangolli Rayanna station to Majestic. This individual had arrived in Bengaluru by train from Shivamogga, the police said.

In another case, five people were arrested by Chandra Layout police in mobile snatching cases. The action was taken based on a complaint filed by a Nagarabhavi resident, who allegedly lost his iphone to bike-borne mobile phone snatchers recently.

Following a probe, the police picked up one of the accused initially and based on the information obtained from him, the cops arrested four of his accomplices recovering 32 stolen mobile phones worth Rs 6.31 lakh from them. S

Stolen laptops recovered

Meanwhile Kumaraswamy Layout police arrested one person allegedly involved in stealing laptops from students and techies staying at PG accommodations.