In a significant breakthrough, the crime branch of Ghaziabad arrested three members of an inter-state vehicle-lifting gang from the Wave City area on Monday, recovering five stolen cars from their possession. The arrested suspects have been identified as Anil Kumar (35) from Aligarh, Yamin alias Bholu (35) from Bulandshahr, and Jitendra Kumar alias Kanhaiya (32) from Vijay Nagar, Ghaziabad.
According to Piyush Kumar Singh, Additional DCP (Crime), the gang was actively involved in vehicle theft across western Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, and Delhi-NCR. The gang used high-tech devices to clone car keys, remove GPS trackers, and carried out well-planned operations, including reconnaissance and using fake number plates.
Anil Kumar, the gang’s mastermind, began his criminal career with petty thefts after dropping out of school in Class 8. He initially worked in Delhi’s Chhatarpur fruit market before moving into motorcycle thefts with the help of a mechanic named Laddu. His network grew through jail contacts and later expanded into a full-fledged car theft racket.
In 2023, Anil met Lavish alias Sheru, an expert in high-end car thefts, in Aligarh jail. After their release, they teamed up with Jitendra, Yamin, and Zahid, a garage owner, to steal cars based on demand. Zahid played a crucial role in altering engine and chassis numbers or dismantling stolen vehicles for parts. Stolen cars were sold for Rs 40,000 to Rs 50,000, with the profits being shared among the gang members.
Jitendra, who had previously worked as a truck conductor and driver, joined the gang after reconnecting with Anil. Meanwhile, Yamin, a repeat offender, had previously served jail time for wire and tractor thefts and was introduced to the car theft ring through a fellow inmate.
The gang members were highly cautious in their operations, often changing the number plates before every theft and using flight mode on their phones to evade location tracking. They also communicated exclusively through WhatsApp and met at pre-arranged locations, avoiding regular phone calls.
The suspects admitted to stealing vehicles for over a decade, with multiple arrests for similar crimes in the past. Based on their inputs, police teams are now investigating the involvement of other accomplices and buyers connected to the car theft racket.
This arrest marks a significant step in dismantling an inter-state criminal network involved in vehicle theft and related crimes across Delhi-NCR and western Uttar Pradesh.
