Jamshedpur: A joint team of Potka, Jugsalai and Azadnagar police arrested two members of a loot gang in Jamshedpur in the small hours of Monday, tracking their whereabouts from the IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) number of a cellphone they had looted a month ago.
The arrested duo, Md Musaraf (26) of Purani Bustee Road in Jugsalai and Md Afroz (25) alias Rehan of Azadnagar Road 6 in Mango, were part of a quartet which had robbed a self-self group agent, Shankar Bhakt, of Rs 76,000 in cash, a tab and two cellphones on February 12 in Potka, around 12km from Jamshedpur.
One of the two cellphones was tracked to Afroz’s home in Azadnagar, leading police on his trail. Once he was caught, he led the way to Musaraf’s Jugsalai home. The police recovered the tab from Musaraf.
Rural SP Md Arshi said they found no cash at either house. The Rs 76,000 the quartet had looted had been distributed among the four, including the two absconding members of the gang, Rishi Lohar and Akbar Ali. However, it has come to light that Akbar is a resident of Islamnagar in Jugsalai while Rishi is from Adityapur.
When Bhakt had gone to Potka thana to lodge a complaint against the four men, he had given the police papers of his cellphones with the IMEI numbers. Rural SP Arshi said they got the breakthrough when Afroz started using a snatched cellphone, The Telegraph reported.
“We were keeping track of the cellphones using the IMEI numbers. As soon we came to know one of the cellphones were switched on, we succeeded in getting an idea of the location of the one of the criminals. We have nabbed two and the rest would also be apprehended soon.”
SHG agent Bhakt, a resident of Barapuri village in Ghatshila, was returning home with the money on his bike via Hata-Ghatshila Road on February 12 afternoon, when the four criminals in two motorcycles intercepted him at village Ghirol on the way. “Two bike-borne criminals purposely dashed into his bike. When he fell, the criminals snatched his bag that had the tab and the cash, took his cellphones and fled,” said rural SP Arshi.
The police have sent Musaraf and Afroz to Ghaghidih Central Jail.