Piler City Police arrested eight members of an interstate bicycle theft gang and confiscated 30 new motorcycles from their property, valued at 45 lakh.
Special groups were dispatched to track down elusive members of the gang elsewhere in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.
Police superintendent S. Senthil Kumar told reporters that special teams were formed with Circle Inspector (Piler Urban) Sadiq Ali last week following complaints about motorcycle theft in the town of Piler. The teams arrested several youths on Thursday who were suspiciously moving on the outskirts of Madanapalle near the border with Karnataka.
During interrogation, it emerged that the duo were part of an interstate gang of bicycle lifters. Her modus operandi consisted of stealing new bicycles in Bengalaru and other locations in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. So far, the gang had reportedly sold several stolen bikes for throwaway prices through online platforms. Preliminary interrogations led to the arrest of eight defendants by Friday evening.
The SP said that a Sumanth Babu aka Puli from Madakasira, Anantapur district, has been identified as the leader of the gang, with several criminal cases pending against him at several Karnataka police stations. A photo studio operator was involved in creating the forged registration and purchase papers for the vehicles. The defendants have been taken into custody and further investigations are ongoing.