HYDERABAD: Mangalhat corporator Raju Singh was arrested on Monday for purchasing a stolen vehicle from a thief. The CCS police registered cases against Raju Singh under Section 379 (theft), 411 (dishonestly receiving stolen property), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating) and 471 (using as genuine a forged document). He was produced in a court and remanded.
J Satyanarayana, deputy commissioner of police, crime, said they arrested Raju based on the confession by notorious thief Lal Safdar Singh. Raju had purchased the vehicle from Singh in 2010, he said.
Lal Safdar Singh and his accomplice Vamsi, both from the city, were stealing cars from Kerala and selling them in the city. A case is pending against them in Manipuram police station. "In 2010, Singh sold a Toyota Qualis to Raju at a low price," police said. However, before the sale, he obtained fake papers for the car from the RTA office at Guntur. Meanwhile, family members of Raju Singh alleged that the police deliberately arrested him to prevent him from participating in the Sri Rama Navami celebrations beginning on April 1. The arrest was a conspiracy hatched by MIM.