The city police arrested a 21-year-old PU dropout who stole as many as 30 bikes to fund his bodybuilding and impress his girlfriend with expensive gifts, including joyrides on a high-end bike bought from selling the stolen bikes.
The accused Gunashekar, a resident of Viveknagar, used to work at a bike service station, where he learnt how to steal bikes using duplicate keys.
Gunashekar would target high-end bikes parked outside houses and sell them to his contacts in Andhra Pradesh for throwaway prices. He would spend the money on bodybuilding and also purchased a high-end bike to take his girlfriend, who works as a receptionist at a private company, on joyrides, the police said.
The police have recovered 30 stolen bikes from him, a senior police officer said.
Gunashekar’s luck ran out when the Koramangala police, based on information, picked up Gunashekhar. The accused confessed to his crimes upon detailed questioning.
The modus operandi
Disclosing his modus operandi, Gunashekar told the police that he would rent a scooter to conduct a recce and identify the bikes to steal.
He would then ride the stolen bikes to neighbouring Andhra Pradesh and hand it over to his associates Ajith Kumar (20), Penchalaiah (20) and Maheshwar Reddy (25), who would sell the bikes and share the money.
Accused Ajith Penchalaiah and Maheshwara Reddy are habitual offenders who came in contact with Gunashekhar six months ago and asked him to steal bikes for them.
The police also questioned Gunashekhar’s girlfriend, but she feigned ignorance about her boyfriend’s thieving ways, a senior police officer
said.
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