Jobless youth arrested for stealing smart bike in Chandigarh

Identified as Tuntun Kumar, 21, the suspect used to work as a labourer at shops and is currently unemployed; smart bike was part of public bicycle sharing project in Chandigarh

A 21-year-old man belonging to Bihar has been arrested for stealing a smart bike, which was a part of the Chandigarh administration’s public bike-sharing project.

The youth told police that he had picked the smart bike from the market in Sector 37D, Chandigarh. (Representational image)

Identified as Tuntun Kumar, the suspect used to work as a labourer at shops and is currently unemployed.

The UT administration had rolled out public bike-sharing system across the city on August 12. The smart bikes are operated through a mobile app. A rider is able to locate the closest bike station with the help of the app, unlock a bike, and ride and return the bike at any dock station. The system offers GPS-based tracking of bicycles and online collection of fare.

The suspect was arrested on the intervening night of October 12 and 13 after he was stopped by a patrolling team for regular checking at the Sector 36/37 light point. He was riding a smart bike, but could not reveal how he managed to open its lock as he did not posses any mobile phone.

Kumar told police that he had picked the bicycle from near Sindhi Sweets in Sector 37D. A case under Sections 379 (theft) and 411 (dishonestly receiving stolen property) of the Indian Penal Code was registered at the police station in Sector 39.