‘Bike thieves’ caught on CCTV turn out to be innocent

On December 26, the police personnel during patrol noticed that the CCTV camera on Haji Sheik Hussein Street in Ice House was turned the other way.

Suspecting foul play, they went through the footage. It showed four men trying to unlock a bike on December 17. After a while, they turned the CCTV camera towards the bike and left the spot.

As the Ice House police suspected them to be bike thieves, they released the footage on social media to identify them. To their surprise, the ‘suspects’ themselves visited the police station to prove their innocence, after their photos went viral.

Sharuk, one of the four persons who runs a roadside eatery, owns the bike. After showing the vehicle documents, he told police that he lost his bike keys on December 17. He then sought help from his friends, who were mechanics. 

“As we were not able to open the bike, we left the vehicle on the road and turned the CCTV camera towards my bike to ensure that it is not stolen,” he said.

Sharuk also claimed that his friends Rizwan, Salman and Habeeb, who were working as mechanics, lost their jobs after police tagged them as thieves. 

When contacted, a senior police officer said that no case has been registered against them.