Bengaluru: Banashankari police have achieved a breakthrough in arresting seven members of the interstate gang of thieves who were stealing expensive high-end Enfield bikes in the city to lead a luxurious life. The thieves inspired by movies took to stealing costly bikes.
Police have so far confiscated 30 bikes worth Rs 68 lakh. The accused Vijay, Hemant, Gunasekhar Reddy, Bhanumurthy, Purushottam, Karthik, and Kiran belonged to Chitthuru in Andhra Pradesh, said police, adding, "They are in the age bracket of 26 to 28 years. Besides, they are well-educated and MBA and engineering degree holders".
These brainy and hi-tech thieves took to watching YouTube video clips to get clues on laying hands on premium bikes, that too during the Covid lockdown, feeling frustrated for not securing the plump job that they had vouched for. Also, they are movie buffs and dreamers and wanted to become rich overnight. That's why the modern age thieves took to stealing bikes. Bullet bikes parked in public places became their fascination. They used to dispose of stolen bikes in Andhra Pradesh at much lower than the ex-showroom price. Then the proceeds from the sales were distributed among the group.
A team led by PSI Manjunath had recently registered a case of bike theft at Banashankari police station, which paved the way for arresting the seven accused. Altogether, 27 cases have been pending against the accused in various police stations, including K.R.Puram, Banashankari, C.K.Achchukattu, Jayanagar, Banaswadi, Marathalli, Begur, and Hoskote, police said. "The investigation further revealed that the accused were stealing bikes for the past three years," said Inspector Puttaswamy.
