Three held for stealing 58 bikes across Thane, 41 cases cracked

Thane police arrested three men in a motorcycle theft gang, recovering 58 stolen bikes worth ₹10 lakh and solving 41 theft cases across the region.

THANE: The Thane Crime Branch Police have busted a motorcycle theft gang and arrested three accused, recovering 58 stolen motorcycles collectively worth ₹10 lakh. The arrests have helped police solve 41 cases registered across Thane, Bhiwandi and Badlapur.

The police seized 58 vehicles from he accused. (Praful Gangurde/HT Photo)

The accused have been identified as Ganesh alias Ganu Raju More, 21, Saheb Ali alias Chhotu Sultan Ali Sheikh, 19, and Sunil alias Bala Shankar Rathod, 20, all residents of Bhiwandi. Police said Saheb Ali, an electrical mechanic, used his technical skills to unlock and start motorcycles without keys.

According to the police, there had been a spike in motorcycle thefts in the Bhiwandi area, prompting both local police and the crime branch to launch parallel investigations. Constable Shabir Sheikh of crime branch Unit 2 received a breakthrough tip-off about the trio, acting on which, the police laid a trap and apprehended the accused in Bhiwandi last week.

The accused were booked under Sections under Sections 303 (2) (theft), 238 (disappearance of evidence), and 3 (5) (common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and produced before a Bhiwandi court, which remanded them in five days of police custody. During interrogation, the trio confessed to stealing 58 motorcycles and their involvement in 41 registered theft cases in Thane district.

Senior police inspector Shital Raut of Crime Branch Unit 2 said the accused were childhood friends with no prior criminal records and mainly targeted motorcycles that were not handle-locked. Saheb Ali, also known as Chhotu, is an electrical mechanic who knows how to unlock two-wheelers. The group typically targeted vehicles that were not handle-locked. Chhotu would then start using direct current with his technical skills.”

Deputy commissioner of police (Crime Branch) Amarsinh Jadhav said, “The gang sold the stolen motorcycles across several districts in Maharashtra, including Jalgaon, Bhusawal, Latur, Jalna, Nashik, Solapur, and Mumbai. We have successfully recovered the stolen bikes from these locations. Their five days of police custody ended on Monday and the trio have been sent to judicial custody.”