Nine minors held detained for stealing 27 bikes

Police said the children used to ride the bikes in Mumbra and Thane.

Nine minors were detained for robbing 27 two-wheelers worth Rs7.6 lakh from Thane and Mumbai area in the past four months. The minor children are between 10 and 15 years of age.

Mumbra police seized 26 motor cycle and arrested nine minor accused in Thane (HT Photo)

They used a master key to steal the motorcycles.

The police said the boys wanted to ride different bikes and so they committed the crimes. After a bike ran out of petrol, they dumped it on the road.

After numerous complaints in Thane over bike thefts, deputy commissioner of police D Swamy ordered to form a team.

A few days ago, an alert citizen saw some boys abandoning a bike on the road walking away. Some people chased them and handed them over to the police. When questioned by the police, they said that they had stolen the bike.

Swamy said, “The minor children have robbed bikes in the past four months. We have recovered master keys. They just wanted to ride different bikes. They knew how to start the bike without keys.”

The police counselled the children and also spoke to their family. They found that seven children were school dropouts while two were enrolled in a school.

A police officer from Thane commissionerate said, “We have also summoned their family members. We also found that the children had made multiple keys. If the keys did not work, they used to break the handle lock and attach the main wire with ignition.”

The officer said, “We had received many complaints and formed a team. After an alert citizen informed the team, we busted the racket.”

Police said the children used to ride the bikes in Mumbra and Thane.

The children were sent to a remand home.

Cases have been registered under relevant sections of the IPC in police stations in Thane and Mumbai.