Bengaluru Police seize 1,949 stolen mobile phones in a month; devices worth Rs 3 crore

Bengaluru: In a month-long drive, the Bengaluru police have recovered 1,949 stolen and snatched mobile phones, worth about Rs 3.02 crore.

During the operation, police, including teams from the Central Crime Branch (CCB), arrested 42 suspects. The CCB alone arrested six suspects and recovered 422 stolen smartphones worth Rs 70 lakh. Officials said the accused had packed the phones in aluminum foil to block tracking signals.

Since March 2024, tracking based on IMEI numbers uploaded on the Central Equipment Identity Register (CEIR) portal has helped police trace 894 smartphones.

“Of these, 522 phones were returned to their original owners, while 372 recovered phones are kept at the Integrated Command and Control Centre. Members of the public can reclaim their devices by producing ownership documents,” police said in a statement.

Announcing the recovery, Bengaluru Police Commissioner Seemant Kumar Singh urged citizens to verify sellers before buying second-hand goods, especially mobile phones and vehicles.

“Go for authorised sellers,” Singh said. He later handed over some of the recovered phones to identified victims at his office on Infantry Road.