Some perfectly normal phrases that may sound like casual greetings, like "uncle sends his regards" or "how is the weather today?", carried a very different meaning for the ‘Dhakka gang’ of pickpockets in Mumbai.
According to a Times of India report, the MIDC Police Station team cracked the WhatsApp codes of the pickpocket gang, which ran a carefully orchestrated operation.
The WhatsApp codes were allegedly used to know if every gang member was safe, if anyone was caught by the cops or if the day’s planning could be executed.
The case revealed how Mumbai's pickpockets have now gone high-tech, running their syndicate through smartphones and daily-changing WhatsApp codes.
The daily changing code
The investigation, led by DCP (West Zone 3) Datta Nalawade, revealed that the gang's main kingpin contacted members every morning via WhatsApp. A new code was sent on WhatsApp every single day, like a one-time password.
DCP Nalawade said the communication was less about planning the theft than checking whether it was safe to proceed.
{{/usCountry}}DCP Nalawade said the communication was less about planning the theft than checking whether it was safe to proceed.
{{/usCountry}}“The purpose wasn’t to discuss the theft. It was to find out whether anyone had been picked up by police,” he was quoted by TOI as saying.
Only after receiving an "all-clear" would they decide which BEST bus route to target and where to meet up. Immediately after two gang members were arrested in Andheri, the remaining members changed their hideout and shifted to Juinagar in Navi Mumbai.
No to stealing iPhones
The MIDC police team recovered 135 expensive smartphones from the gang. The market value of these phones ranges from ₹90,000 to ₹1.5 lakh. According to the police, this gang actively avoided stealing iPhones because they are extremely difficult to unlock.
Furthermore, iPhones yield a very low resale value in their primary black markets, which are located in Bangladesh and Nepal.
Officers explained that the 4- to 5-member gang would board BEST buses and, without speaking a word to each other, 2 or 3 members would distract the victim by jostling them or creating a commotion. Meanwhile, the main member of the gang—referred to as the "Machine"—would pick up the phone or wallet from the victim's pocket. Following the heist, all members would disperse and escape by getting off at different bus stops.