The Itanagar police have dismantled a sophisticated interstate vehicle theft and smuggling racket, recovering 57 high-end stolen vehicles valued at over Rs 30.5 crore. This is said to be one of the largest single recoveries of stolen vehicles by a police station in India so far.
The police have arrested five key suspects, while more arrests and vehicle seizures are expected, said Itanagar SP Jummar Basar.
Verification through the e-Sakshya portal confirmed that the vehicles were blacklisted and linked to theft and robbery cases in Delhi, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh.
Arunachal Pradesh is a lucrative market for high-end stolen cars, although many cases have been busted. It is not difficult to detect stolen cars since all details are registered online, and vehicle ownership history can be easily traced through VAHAN or RTO records.
Also, unless one is willing to be party to vehicle theft, buying vehicles without complete and authentic documentation implicates them. The police alone cannot tackle this complex smuggling network; citizens also need to be aware and refrain from participating, even if buying a car at half price seems like a tempting option.