Mobile phone snatchers’ gang busted, 8 held

Bareilly: Ahead of festive season rush, government railway police (GRP) and crime prevention detective staff (CPDS) of railways conducted a joint operation and busted a mobile phone snatchers’ gang usually active in crowded trains on Sunday. At least eight people were arrested in the operation at Moradabad railway station.

The arrested men were allegedly involved in stealing passengers’ valuables such as mobile phones and laptops, among others. The GRP recovered stolen mobile phones and sharp-edged knives from their possession and sent them to jail after lodging an FIR against them.

Senior divisional commercial manager (SDCM) of Northern Railways (NR), Rekha, said that the divisional railway manager (DRM) of NR, Tarun Prakash, had expressed his disappointment over increasing cases of mobile phone lifting and valuables of passengers travelling by trains.

The SDCM added that in this regard the DRM had issued instructions following which senior divisional security commissioner of NR Apurv Agnihotri set up a team of CPDS and in cooperation with GRP headed by SP GRP Moradabad division, PK Tiwari, the drive against anti-social elements was launched. At 6:45 am on Sunday, they apprehended four suspects from platform numbers 6 and 7 and took them to GRP station. Besides, four more suspects were detained from platform numbers 4 and 5 an hour later. Upon frisking, police recovered nine stolen mobile phones and seized six knives from their possession.

The arrested persons have been identified as Mohammad Ali, Qasim, Salman and Ansh of Moradabad, Sandeep of Haridwar, Azim of Bareilly, Rahul of Allahabad and Gufran of Sambhal district.