Thief with fetish for Splendor bikes arrested

A suspected vehicle thief having a fetish for Hero Splendor motorbikes has been arrested in northern Bengaluru, police said.

Bagalagunte police arrested Shashi Kumar alias Gunda (30), of Gauribidanur in Chikkaballapura district, following a complaint by Devaraj, a resident of Defence Colony. Devaraj went to the police after his motorbike was stolen from outside his home between 8.30 am and 9.30 am on May 15.

An investigation led the police to Kumar. That he was previously arrested by Doddaballapur rural police for a similar offence helped the cops track him down. Kumar targets only Hero Splendor bikes because they are in high demand in rural areas. Breaking their lock is second nature to him. He usually steals bikes parked outside homes, police said.

Kumar employed a no-frills approach to selling the stolen bikes. He would sell them for anywhere between Rs 3,000 and Rs 10,000 without any paperwork, telling the buyers that the bikes were purchased on bank loans, which their owners could not repay. His job was also made easier by villagers' disregard for vehicle documents. His buyers were okay with purchasing bikes pledged with banks, saying they would anyway not take them to the cities, police explained.

Police said they had recovered 18 stolen Hero Spendlor bikes worth Rs 7.2 lakh from Kumar's possession. All but five of the owners have been traced. Kumar's associate, Murthy, is absconding.

Nine cases of vehicle theft registered at the Bagalagunte police station, three at Madanayakanahalli and one RMC Yard police stations were solved with his arrest. Kumar has two wives.