12 vehicle thieves held, 24 stolen vehicles recovered in Delhi's Dwarka

New Delhi, May 29 (PTI) The Delhi Police has arrested 12 vehicle thieves and recovered 24 stolen vehicles in a series of targeted operations at multiple locations in Dwarka, an official said on Thursday.

Police said joint efforts of the Anti Auto Theft Squad, police stations including Dabri, Mohan Garden, Uttam Nagar and Sector-23 Dwarka, led to the apprehension of the repeat offenders and recovery of the stolen property.

"The operations were conducted as part of a district-wide special drive to combat rampant motor vehicle thefts in the region," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Dwarka) Ankit Singh said.

The officer said Ketan Singh (24), a listed "bad character", and Rudra (18), both residents of Uttam Nagar, were apprehended within the Dabri police station limits. They were tracked through CCTV footage. On their instance, six motorcycles, including two from Sitapuri and Anand Vihar, were recovered. Ketan has previous involvement in nine cases of vehicle thefts.

In a separate operation, the team from Mohan Garden arrested Amit (27) and Chandan (23), both bad characters of Dwarka North, and Aman (22) while investigating a case. The team recovered four motorcycles and a scooter from their possession. The accused have prior involvement in multiple cases of robbery, burglary and snatching.

The Anti Auto Theft Squad of Dwarka solved two major cases. In the first, Robert (42), a habitual offender with 34 previous cases including robbery and those under the Arms Act, and his accomplice Ravi (34), involved in 10 prior cases including for murder, were arrested. On interrogation, two stolen vans and four two-wheelers were recovered.

In the second case, two accused -- Raman (56) and his son Sagar (31), residents of Rohini Sector-5 -- were arrested and found in possession of a stolen car. The gang had reportedly sold several stolen vehicles in Meerut.

In Uttam Nagar, a night-patrolling team intercepted a suspicious biker near the Nawada-Hastsal road. The rider, identified as Sandeep (24), attempted to flee but was caught after a chase. The vehicle he was riding was confirmed as stolen via the police portal. Further interrogation led to the recovery of two additional stolen motorcycles. Sandeep was previously involved in four criminal cases.

Meanwhile, the Dwarka Sector-23 team arrested two more thieves -- Sharukh (28) with 14 past involvements in snatching and robbery and Deepak Singh (28), involved in two previous snatching cases. The duo were held in connection with a scooter theft from Sector 19 in Dwarka. Two stolen scooters were recovered.

"The crackdown resulted in the cumulative recovery of 24 stolen vehicles -- four cars and 20 two-wheelers," the DCP said, adding that further investigation is underway. PTI BM RC