2 men held in Mumbai for robbing Ola drivers

The accused allegedly took drivers to a secluded spot before robbing them at knife-point

Two unemployed men were recently arrested in Andheri (East) for allegedly using a stolen mobile phone for booking Ola cabs and robbing the drivers at knife-point in the wee hours.

The arrested accused have theft cases against them. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

After two robbery complaints reported on January 20 and 21, the Sakinaka police formed a special team to track Rafiq Babu Shaikh, 26, and Mohamed Nazim Irfan Ansari, 28. Shaikh and Ansari, from Sakinaka, had theft cases against them.

Earlier this year, they managed to pickpocket a mobile phone from a man in Andheri. They used it to book Ola cabs between 3am and 4am.

According to the police, Shaikh and Ansari would take these drivers to a secluded spot in an industrial area off the Andheri-Kurla road. They would rob the drivers of their cash and mobile phones at knife point, said an officer.

A team led by sub-inspector Rahul Waghmare laid a trap and arrested them from Khadi no.3 in Sakinaka on Tuesday.

The duo splurged a few thousand rupees on beer. The police recovered five phones robbed from the two drivers and a pedestrian, and the knife. Shaikh and Ansari will remain in police custody till January 26.