Cops recover ex-KAS officer’s handbag

Acknowledging a complaint over the phone, in less than 10 hours, Koramangala police recovered the handbag of a retired woman KAS officer from an Uber driver.

The driver had made away with B Sowbhagyalatha’s handbag from the National Games Village, a gated community in Koramangala on February 3.

Sowbhagyalatha (74) retired as a joint registrar of the cooperative societies.

Now, the lady is in awe of the Koramangala police who responded to her distress on time. The bag contained an ancestral 80-year-old gold chain that Sowbhagyalatha’s mother had given to her.

Police arrested the Uber driver, Vinay, in his late twenties, produced him before a magistrate and remanded him in judicial custody.

Sowbhagyalatha, a resident of National Games Village, had taken an Uber from ST Bed Koramangala to her home.

It was about 11 am when she was dropped off at her apartment. The Uber cab had sped away by the time she realised her handbag was inside the cab.

“I immediately started calling the driver, but the calls I made went through to the Uber call centre where the staff were not helpful,” Sowbhagyalatha told DH.

Once she got through to the driver, he said he will look into it, and hung up after which he did not respond.

“When I reported the incident to Uber, they replied they were not responsible for anything that happens after the trip and that I may pursue it legally,” said Sowbhagyalatha. Thereafter she dialled the Koramangala police and stated her complaint. Cops at the station immediately started tracking the cab and zeroed in on the driver before 8 pm the same day.

“I received a call around 8 pm. A constable told me they had recovered my bag. Along with my daughter, I immediately rushed to the police station and identified my bag. My Aadhar card, PAN, and Rs 14,000 had gone, but fortunately, my gold chain was recovered,” Sowbhagyalatha said, adding that the police have recovered Rs 10,000 from the accused.