A couple in Delhi, along with their associates, allegedly ran a lucrative racket involving buying stolen phones from thieves and snatchers, smuggling them to Nepal, and selling them at a substantial profit. The operation came to a halt when they were apprehended by the police.
DCP (Crime) Rakesh Pawaria stated, “On May 19, at 3.35 pm, the special staff of the Central district received a tip-off regarding one Arjun… who would come in a grey Swift car to Kamla Market to send snatched or stolen mobile phones to a market in Nepal by bus or train. We were told he may also possess an illegal weapon… Arjun is involved in cases of attempt to murder, snatching, robbery, theft, and the Arms Act.”
Acting on this information, a team led by Inspector Rohit Kumar laid a trap near the Ajmeri Gate signal. They intercepted Arjun and his wife Ruksar on May 19 as they were travelling in a car. Arjun was found in possession of a loaded pistol and seven live rounds. Upon searching the car, the police discovered a stash of stolen mobile phones—150 devices of various brands, 140 adapters of mobile chargers, and 90 USB cables hidden in cartons in the trunk.
During interrogation, Arjun, also known as Vikas, revealed that he and his wife, along with their friend Himanshu alias Mota, were actively smuggling stolen mobile phones to Nepal through Bihar’s Madhubani. They would purchase stolen phones from thieves for Rs 4,000 to Rs 5,000 and sell them in Nepal for Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000, thus making a substantial profit.
Police further discovered that Himanshu had recently returned from Nepal and was travelling on the Swatantrata Senani Express train. They arrested him at Ghaziabad railway station and recovered around 25 stolen phones from him.
Additionally, another individual involved in the racket, Jagarnath Kumar Yadav, was arrested at the Nepal border, and 226 stolen phones were recovered from him.
In total, the police seized 226 stolen phones from Yadav, 51 from Arjun and Ruksar, and 25 from Himanshu, bringing the total number of recovered phones to 302.