The accused were identified as Mohammad Sibbu, 38, Aamir, 28, Safiq, 23, Mohammad Arzad Ali, 31, YM Sabir Ahmed, 21, Asrar Hussain, 55, Kewal Kamal, 45, Vinay Kumar, 33, Tarun Seoran, 30, Rajesh Kumar, 35, and Atul Chunni, 35.
Ever wondered what happens to your car after being declared scrap by an insurance company? The Delhi Police's Crime Branch has busted an auto-lifting gang that was turning this scrap into gold. As many as 11 people have been arrested and 30 vehicles, including SUVs and high-end sedans, have been recovered.
The accused were identified as Mohammad Sibbu, 38, Aamir, 28, Safiq, 23, Mohammad Arzad Ali, 31, YM Sabir Ahmed, 21, Asrar Hussain, 55, Kewal Kamal, 45, Vinay Kumar, 33, Tarun Seoran, 30, Rajesh Kumar, 35, and Atul Chunni, 35.
In a novel modus operandi, the gang members would first buy these scrapped vehicles from dealers. They would then steal a vehicle of the same make and interchange the vehicles' chassis, and registration and model numbers. The stolen vehicles were then sold as original at hefty prices across the country, the police said.
During interrogation, the accused revealed that they used to sell stolen vehicles in the open market easily, through their links in various states. Senior police officers said the accused, one of them a graduate, have been involved in disposing off more than 500 stolen luxury cars in Haryana, Punjab, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Nagaland.
Additional Commissioner of Police, Crime, Alok Kumar said the accused included a set of middlemen, who would tamper with the engine and chassis numbers and procure forged documents for stolen vehicles.
"The gang operated through a network of car dealers across the country. The members would trace vehicles declared as 'total loss vehicles' by insurance companies. These vehicles, along with their documents, were then purchased. Later, the gang would target a brand new vehicle of the same make and colour and steal them. A team of experts would replace the original engine number and chassis number with those of the stolen vehicle," Kumar said.
Police said, besides the 30 stolen vehicles, they also recovered laptops, tools, punching keys, grinding machine, and drill machine used to tamper with the chassis and engine numbers of stolen cars from the accused.
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