Powai police have arrested two members of a gang involved in stealing Zoomcar company cars. The arrested- accused were identified as Jagdish Sohanram Bishnoi (23) and Mahendra Ratiram Godara (19). Powai police also have seized six stolen vehicles from Rajasthan. The arrest of the duo has exposed a gang involved in car thefts across the country, including Mumbai and Maharashtra. More cars are likely to be recovered soon.
Dhiraj Maurya, a field executive of Zoom Car Company, had complained with the Powai Police Station alleging that his company’s car (KA03AF0788) was booked for rent and its GPS was removed. “Car occupiers are required to take a photo of the car and send it to the company before taking the car for a ride. We found photos of the accused in reflection on the window glass of the car, which he sent to the company before taking the car for a ride. Based on that, we kept an eye on the people who booked the car by contacting the car company,” said Dr. Maheshwar Reddy, Deputy Commissioner of Police, zone 10.
Rajasthan Connection
“While investigating, we came to know that a suspect had booked a car to go to Rajasthan on December 27. We kept a watch and took him into custody from the custom colony area of Powai. In interrogation, he accepted that he was stealing the car with another colleague and taking it to Rajasthan,” told investigating officer police sub-inspector (PSI) Yash Palve.
Information provided by the accused, a team of investigating officers PSI Palve, Detection Officer PSI Vinod Lad, Police Constable Mohol, Police Naik Jagtap, Police Naik Galande, Police Shipai Kadam and Police Shipai Katte were sent to Rajasthan. “A total of six motor cars including two Creta’s, one I-20, two Swifts and one Briza have been seized from Matoda, Lohawat, Phalodi, Bhojasar, Jodhpur and other villages in Rajasthan. The seized cars were found to be stolen from Mumbai, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, and were being used with a change of color, fake or without a number plate,” said Vijay Dalvi, Senior Police Inspector (add’l charge) of Powai police station.
seized cars
Modus operandi
The arrested-accused and his accomplices were delivering gas cylinders at Ulwe Navi Mumbai. When the lockdown started, in March 2020 he first booked a Zoom car from Navi Mumbai to his hometown in Rajasthan. Near the Phalodi, Nagor Chairaha in Rajasthan GPS of the car was removed and the vehicle was used for its benefit. They got addicted to it and as soon as the borders of the state were opened, the accused and his other accomplices had travelled from Rajasthan to different places like Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh. “They book the vehicles of Zoom Car Company on rent by using fake SIM cards, ID proofs, driving licenses and bank transactions in others’ names. The accused were careful to hide their identities and not leave any clue behind” told the detection officer PSI Vinod Lad.
“After booking a car, a code is sent to the person making the booking. Using that code the car doors open. After opening the door, you can take the car to the desired place with the help of the key in the car. The company monitors these vehicles through GPS. Taking advantage of this, the accused stole the vehicle and took it to Rajasthan, removed its GPS and used it in other crimes, including illegal use. Some cars have also been sold,” Powai police added.
Under the supervision of Deputy Commissioner of Police zone 10 Dr. Maheshwar Reddy, Assistant Commissioner of Police Sakinaka Division Dinesh Desai, Senior Police Inspector ( add’l charge) of Powai Police Vijay Dalvi, Police Inspector (Crime) Dilip Dhamunse, police sub-inspector Yash Palve, Detection Officer police sub-inspector Vinod Lad and detection team arrested the accused and recovered the car.
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