14 stolen cellphones recovered, buyer held along with snatcher

Following repeated complaints about snatching cases in the Pondy Bazaar police station limits, a special team was formed under the supervision of Deputy Commissioner P Aravindan to identify and nab the criminals. The team first retrieved a CCTV footage that showed a duo snatching an expensive mobile phone from a pedestrian. They were soon identified as Hasan Ali, a 27-year-old from Madipakkam, who had partnered with Kaatu Poonai Vignesh to indulge in a series of mobile phone snatching in Pondy Bazaar police limit.

In the meanwhile, the police team also found out that the stolen mobile phone was active. Tracking the signal, they traced and secured the person who was using the stolen handset, who told the police officers that he had bought it from a shop owned by Rashid Ahmed.

Ahmed, a 23-year-old from Virudhunagar, used to run mobile phone shops in Annai Sathya Bazaar in T Nagar and Burma Bazaar. However, after city police began cracking down on snatchers and those dealing with stolen goods, he started operating from a lodge in Mannadi, police said.

The special team nabbed Ahmed soon and based on his inputs, they arrested Hasan Ali who sold stolen phones to him. The two-wheeler used for the crime was also seized from him. Both were remanded in judicial custody, while a hunt has been launched for Vignesh. 

In another case, Sembium crime wing police on Friday arrested M Sugumaran (28) of Old Washermanpet and F Anthony Kumar (32) of Rajakuppam, a mobile phone snatcher duo who targeted rail passengers.

As many as 30 mobile phones, which they had snatched from commuters on EMU trains on Chennai Beach-Tambaram and Chennai Central-Gummidipoondi routes, were seized.