Inter-state gang nabbed in M'lore

The arrested are Moideen alias Unhi (37) of Manjeshwar, Hanif alias Eli Hanif (37) of Jokatte, S Ashraf (28) of Vittlapadnur, Sayyed Nihal alias Sayyed Irfan Nihal (40) of Kodipalya in Bangalore and Moideen Shareef alias RTO Moideen (42) of Chippinakatte in Hassan.
Addressing mediapersons here on Friday, Superintendent of Police Dr A S Rao said the estimated value of the seized vehicles was Rs 1.20 crore.

From three states
He said the Bantwal police had arrested Moideen and Hanif on February 18 and recovered two two-wheelers. During interrogation, the duo revealed they had stolen vehicles from Karnataka, Kerala and Maharashtra.

Duplicate keys used
Rao said Moideen and Hanif stole vehicles, changed the numberplates and got them registered at the RTO using fake documents before selling them to unsuspecting customers. Most of the vehicles were stolen using duplicate keys.

Sayyed Nihal, the kingpin of the gang and a resident of Kodipalya in Bangalore, is involved in more than 24 vehicle thefts cases across Karnataka. Based on the information given by Moideen and Hanif, the police recovered vehicles from Bangalore, Davangere, Hubli, Mandya, Mysore, Javagal, Manjeshwar, Bantwal and Arasikere.

“We also have clues on five more stolen vehicles, including two lorries, a Maruti Omni, a Scorpio and a Tavera, which will be brought to Mangalore within two days. Some members of the gang are yet to be traced,” he said.

The Superintendent of Police said the owners would be identified and after court orders, the vehicles would be handed over to them. The police team which cracked the theft cases will be given a reward of Rs 10,000, added.