Noida: Police arrest 4 thieves, recover 35 vehicles

To steal the vehicles from Delhi-NCR cities, the suspects would target a particular brand of motorcycle whose “master key” facilitated stealing all the vehicles

Noida: The Noida police arrested four alleged vehicle lifters on Friday night in two separate incidents, and confiscated a total of 35 stolen vehicles from their possession, officers said on Saturday.

The suspects have been booked under charges of theft of the Indian Penal Code and relevant sections of the Arms Act. (Sunil Ghosh/HT Photo)

To steal the vehicles from Delhi-NCR cities, the suspects would target a particular brand of motorcycle whose “master key” facilitated stealing all the vehicles, said additional deputy commissioner of police (Noida) Manish Mishra.

“In the first incident, the two suspects identified as Anoop Mavi (50), a resident of Ghaziabad, and Dev Kumar alias Deva (35), a resident of Johripur, Delhi, were arrested following a police encounter at the Sector 74-75 intersection by the Sector 113 police station on Friday night. Police recovered 19 stolen vehicles from their possession besides an illicit country-made pistol,” said Mishra.

Mavi and Deva are inter-district vehicle lifters with several cases registered against them across the NCR cities, the officer informed.

“Mavi has 42 FIRs while Deva has nine FIRs registered against him at police stations in Delhi and Ghaziabad, under charges of theft, and relevant sections of the Arms Act. Seven of the 19 motorbikes recovered from them, have been linked to those stolen from Noida. Upon interrogation, they revealed that they used to sell the vehicles in rural areas, several kilometres away from urban areas to evade police suspicion,” said Mishra, adding that the two vehicle lifters have been active since 2009.

In the second incident, two vehicle lifters were arrested by Sector 39 police station team on Saturday night following a tip-off from Som Bazar in Sector 44, Noida, he added.

Police identified the suspects as Animesh alias Anni (19), a resident of Trilokpuri, Delhi, and Shivam (20), a resident of Sadarpur colony in Sector 45, Noida.

“Police recovered 11 motorcycles, three scooters, one e-rickshaw from the possession of the suspects. Both the suspects have six FIRs registered against them since 2021 at various police stations in Noida,” said Mishra, adding that eight of the bikes recovered from the suspects were stolen from Noida.

The suspects used to dismantle the two-wheelers after stealing them and sell the spare parts on demand in Delhi’s vehicle markets, he added.

“Each of the two suspects belongs to separate gangs, the officer informed.

“The four suspects have been booked under charges of theft of the Indian Penal Code and relevant sections of the Arms Act,” said the ADCP, adding: “They were sent to judicial custody on Saturday after being produced before a magistrate.”