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Engineering graduate held with 50 stolen phones in Patiala
The accused, who was also a gold medallist in the 2014 national wrestling games, took to crime to fund drug habit, said the police
A 31-year-old engineering graduate, who was a gold medalist in the national wrestling games in 2014, was arrested on charges of theft following a tip-off on Saturday.
Police have recovered 50 stolen phones, two high-end watches and a pair of branded shoes from his possession.
The accused has been identified as Charan Kamal, a native of Patiala. He was nabbed from a hotel near gurdwara Dukhnivaran of Patiala, in connection with a theft case registered by a Chandigarh resident.
The complainant, Sumeet Sehgal, an advocate, who stays in Sector 16, Chandigarh, said that on August 3, he had dozed off without bolting the door of his house.
When he woke up around 5.15am, he found that his iPhone, two watches of Victorinsx and Lumiwox brands, and a pair of white Adidas shoes were missing. On his complaint, a case under Section 380 (theft) of the Indian Penal Code was registered at the Sector 17 police station.
Addiction turned wrestler into thief
Police said the accused, who was previously a national-level wrestler, took to crime about three months ago after his parents refused to fund him on finding out about his drug addiction. As per the cops, the accused consumes around two-gram heroin on a daily basis, which costs about ₹4,000.
Police said that the 31-year-old also has an assault case registered against him in Patiala.
The accused’s mother is a lecturer in a college in Patiala while his father works with a private firm. His brother is settled abroad.
Police said the accused had mostly been active in Punjab. He was sent to two-day police remand on Saturday.
