Delhi Police bust mobile phone theft syndicate, recover 43 stolen iPhones

New Delhi, July 4 (IANS) Delhi Police recently busted a gang of mobile phone thieves and 'traders', recovering as many as 44 premium phones, of which 43 were stolen iPhones, an official said.

Two accused Navdeep Kaur (26) and Ramandeep Bhangu (33) were apprehended by the police during the operation.

The two accused, part of a mobile phone theft syndicate, used to receive stolen phones from thieves and then dismantle them into pieces. The broken pieces of mobile phones were then sold in open markets.

The theft syndicate, which largely remained undetected, came under police scrutiny after a complaint of iPhone 15 snatching was reported at the IP Estate police station.

A case was lodged and cops launched the probe. After getting crucial information, a police team initiated a targeted operation to trace the mobile and reached the Karol Bagh area.

The police team not only unearthed a large storage of stolen mobile phones but also stumbled upon a large cache of stolen high-end phones.

Police apprehended Navdeep Kaur from her residence and recovered 44 stolen mobile phones (43 Apple iPhones, 1 Samsung Fold) and also a large quantity of dismantled mobile phone parts, suspected to be stolen iPhones.

When grilled, the accused confessed that she was receiving and dealing in stolen mobile phones along with her accomplices, Sanjeev Kumar and Ramandeep.

They used to dismantle the phones and sell the parts in open markets.

Days later, her accomplice and another accused, Ramandeep Bhangu, were apprehended from Nahan, Himachal Pradesh, who was about to flee to Nepal.

Disclosing their modus operandi, he said that they used to purchase stolen mobile phones from a ‘source’ in Karol Bagh, dismantle them and then sell them in repairing shops. A co-accused Sanjeev Kumar is currently absconding.

Both the accused, Ramandeep and Navdeep, had come to Delhi in the hope of a better life some years ago and started working in a mobile repair shop in Karol Bagh. However, frustrated with low profits in the mobile repair business, they turned to crime and became involved in the illegal trade of stolen mobile phones.

--IANS

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