Mobile 'thief' held after leaping off running train in handcuffs 3 years ago

His guilt is yet to be established, but Naseem Wajid Khan alias Naseem Liyakat Ali certainly gave railway cops the runaround for three years. The 31-year-old was arrested yesterday by Dadar Government Railway Police (GRP), who will deliver him to their Kurla counterparts, as the accused escaped from the latter's custody in 2010 after being apprehended for mobile theft.

Naseem Wajid Khan alias Naseem Liyakat Ali escaped from Kurla GRP in 2010 after being apprehended for cellphone theft

Naseem was detained by Kurla GRP in April 2010 when he was found in possession of a stolen phone. Khan says he thought he would have to spend ten to fifteen years in jail, and his elderly parents in Uttar Pradesh would have to fend for themselves. "So, Naseem chose to flee. When he was being escorted by a constable to the courts at CST, he jumped from a running local train at Parel station with handcuffs on," said Ravindra Dalvi, inspector of Dadar GRP.

Cops at Dadar who registered an offence were searching for Naseem over the last three years, during which they visited several places at Wadala TT where he resided earlier, and also his native village in UP. "Every other day our teams would drop by at his residence, but we failed to draw out any information regarding his whereabouts. Finally, we laid a trap and managed to nab him from Wadala," said Dalvi.

"Naseem says he did not steal the phone that was found in his possession, but had actually purchased it. He claims he was afraid that he might have to spend several years behind bars, and was concerned about the fate of his aged parents," the inspector added.