Mumbai: Thieves used details of 2-wheelers on auction sites to sell stolen maal

CCTV grab of the accused stealing bikes

The Borivli police have apprehended three individuals who would steal bikes and sell them using documents of two-wheelers listed for sale on auction platforms. The incident came to light last week, when a Borivli police team, during a patrol, came across three men acting suspiciously. The team managed to nab two of the men while the third managed to flee. Upon inspecting the documents of their bikes, it emerged that one of the bikes belonged to one of the men while the other lacked number plates.

The police detained the duo identified as Milind Manohar Sawant, 33 and Arvind Rajan Gadkari, 28. They confessed to stealing bikes during interrogation and named Yash Deepak Kothari, 24, as their accomplice who had fled the scene. Sawant has more than 20 bike theft cases registered against him, while Kothari has 14 and Gadkari has three cases.

Arvind Rajan Gadkari, Yash Deepak Kothari and Milid Manohar Sawant, involved in more than 20 bike theft cases

"We have solved two bike theft cases that occurred within the jurisdiction of the Borivali police station and the rest are from Kurar, Vikroli, Dindoshi, Vakola, MIDC, and Kasturba Marg police stations. So far, we have recovered 10 bikes from their possession," said an officer from the Borivli police station.

During their interrogation, it was revealed that Sawant had registered himself on auction bidding platforms and would bid for vehicles. He would request RC books and other related documents of the bikes put up for auction by agents and then use those documents and the bike numbers to sell the stolen bikes in the market for cheap.

"Four of the bikes stolen had been put up for sale in Pune using these forged documents. Sawant was looking for buyers but was caught before any sale was made," the officer said. According to the officer, the accused are experts in bike theft. "They can easily break any bike lock in the blink of an eye. Several incidents of bike theft involving the trio, in Mulund and other areas, have been captured on camera," he added.

Under the guidance of DCP Anand Bhoite and Senior Inspector Ninad Sawant, PSI Indrajeet Patil and his detection team busted this gang and solved 10 bike theft cases. "The recovered bikes were stolen from Borivli (2 bikes), Kurar (2), Vikhroli (2), Dindoshi (1), Vakola (1), MIDC (1), and Kasturba Marg (1)," added another officer.

20
Approx no of cases against one of the accused