CHENNAI: Investigations into the mobile phone theft incidents in Chepauk Stadium during the Chennai Super Kings vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru IPL match at the Chepauk Stadium on March 28 led to the arrest of three more persons - Rahul Kumar (24), Jither Sani (30) and Praveen Kumar Matto (21). The arrests were made from a private lodge in Vellore, and 31 stolen phones have been recovered.
Earlier on April 2, the police had arrested eight men, including four minors, six from Jharkhand and two from West Bengal, from the same lodge. A total of 74 phones have been recovered so far.
The Triplicane police said the suspects, all hailing from Tin Pahar village in Jharkhand, are allegedly part of an interstate gang that brought in youth on a daily wage of Rs 1,000, trained them in distraction thefts and pickpocketing, and deployed them at crowded public spaces such as stadiums, markets, beaches, and bus terminals across India.
They had so far targeted areas like Koyambedu, Vadapalani, Avadi and Purasawalkam in Chennai apart from Bengaluru and Tirupati. Many of the recruits are minors or relatives of the gang members, the police said. After committing the thefts, the stolen phones were allegedly smuggled back to Jharkhand and sold in the Maoist-infested regions, and across the West Bengal-Bangladesh border, the police said.
The investigation began after 20 complaints were submitted via the Chennai Singam IPL app after the match. AI-based analysis of surveillance footage and spectator inputs helped identify suspects and trace movements, the police added.