AMBALA: Ambala Police have achieved a breakthrough in their drive against vehicle theft by arresting an alleged interstate motorcycle thief involved in nearly 35 theft cases and recovering 20 stolen motorcycles. The accused has been remanded to six days of police custody as investigators work to dismantle the wider theft and disposal network, police said.The accused has been identified as Anil, a resident of Bilaspur. According to police, he had been targeting motorcycles in Ambala, Kurukshetra, Yamunanagar and Uttar Pradesh’s Saharanpur district before selling the stolen vehicles across the state border.Ambala DSP Jagbir Malik said incidents of motorcycle theft had been on the rise in Ambala City, Mahesh Nagar and Ambala Cantonment. In response, the district’s Anti-Vehicle Theft (AVT) Cell was given specific directions to identify and arrest those involved.Acting on specific intelligence, an AVT team set up a checkpoint and intercepted the suspect. During preliminary questioning, police recovered a stolen motorcycle linked to a case registered at Mahesh Nagar Police Station.DSP Malik said that during initial interrogation, Anil allegedly confessed to stealing around 35 motorcycles. Police said he transported the stolen motorcycles to Saharanpur, where they were sold. Investigators also revealed that the accused had previously spent approximately 18 months in Saharanpur Jail.Police said the interrogation revealed that Anil had previously worked as a finance operator. However, after his business collapsed during the Covid-19 pandemic, he fell into heavy debt. To evade creditors and avoid detection, he allegedly abandoned his home and began staying at temples and gurdwaras while carrying out motorcycle thefts and concealing his identity.Police have so far recovered 20 stolen motorcycles from the accused’s possession. Officials expect to recover around 15 more motorcycles during the ongoing police remand.Investigators are also trying to identify the individuals in Saharanpur who allegedly purchased the stolen motorcycles, with the aim of exposing and dismantling the entire interstate vehicle theft network.Police credited the successful operation to the coordinated efforts of the AVT team led by Inspector Rishipal Singh, with key contributions from ASIs Kanwal Jeet Singh and Devender Kumar, Head Constable Mahabir Singh, and Constable Vinod Kumar.
