Bengaluru police have arrested a couple in a high-end car theft racket in which people from different states are suspected of involvement. Satyendra Singh is a Rajasthan-born man, and Pramila Thakur is a Delhi-based woman. The duo was caught by the Parappana Agrahara police for stealing expensive vehicles in Bengaluru.
The accused had allegedly travelled to Bengaluru to steal the expensive cars and sold them to people in desert areas. The investigation also revealed that the couple may have been involved in as many as 21 car thefts across Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan.
The case was uncovered when a Toyota Fortuner was stolen from a hotel parking area in Singasandra on June 27. The Fortuner was owned by Muthu Subramani, a Tamil Nadu native who had traveled to Bengaluru in his Fortuner, the police said. The car was parked at the hotel, but the accused used a duplicate or fake key to unlock and steal the SUV.
After allegedly stealing the Fortuner, the couple escaped from Bengaluru through the Belagavi-Pune route and headed towards Rajasthan. Police suspect that the vehicle was eventually transported to the Barmer region of Rajasthan, where it was sold at a lower price.
The investigation turned out to be more serious when police began tracking the movements of the accused and the stolen vehicle. The Fortuner theft was not an isolated incident, according to the police; they said the accused told investigators.
According to preliminary findings, the duo targeted expensive vehicles because of their high resale value. The stolen vehicles were taken to Rajasthan, especially remote desert areas where they could fetch prices far below their original market value.
The police believe the accused had come up with a method to pick the right vehicle to steal and use a duplicate key. There are SUVs and other expensive vehicles that they’d target to do so, they said. Now authorities are getting to the bottom of all the fraud committed in obtaining, transporting, and selling the stolen vehicles.
The Parappana Agrahara police are also investigating if other people were involved in the racket. The investigation will look at how the accused obtained duplicate keys, how the vehicles were transported across state borders, and who bought the stolen cars.
Based on the police investigation, the couple was involved in 21 vehicle theft cases across Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan.
The motive for the alleged crimes is also being investigated. The couple was reportedly stealing high-end vehicles to support a lavish lifestyle; they were reported to have told investigators. Their repeated travel between states and the sale of stolen cars are evidence that the operation may have been planned rather than a series of isolated incidents.
So far, the arrest has opened investigators up to trace the broader network and bring back more cars. Law enforcement agencies in other states will be in touch with police to verify the cases and find more victims.
There is also the need for vehicle security, particularly for owners of high-end cars, police have said.
There is still more investigation, and police are searching for the other stolen vehicles and all persons connected to the alleged interstate car theft network.
