KOCHI: A thief specialising in stealing only Royal Enfield Bullet bikes. Yes, you heard it right!
Police on Wednesday arrested a 31-year-old man and his accomplice, both Fort Kochi natives, for stealing as many as 11 Bullet bikes, five of them from Kochi alone, over the last 2-3 months.
Police said Shiras alias Siraj would vanish into neighbouring Tamil Nadu before daybreak after stealing the bikes. Shiras's accomplice Rishad PS, 32, who carried out the recce before the thefts is also in police custody.
Shiras had stolen four motorbikes from the Fort Kochi area and two bikes from the Mattanchery area in recent months. Following the series of bike thefts, police had formed a special squad to trace the persons involved.
Shiras was hiding in Tamil Nadu after being wanted by the police in several cases in Kerala. He specifically targets Bullet bikes due to high demand in the resale market. "He mainly carried out the sale of stolen Bullet motorbikes in Tamil Nadu," said VG Ravindranath, assistant commissioner of police, Mattanchery. "From the interrogation, we have found that he has sold 11 stolen Bullets in Tamil Nadu," he said.
While five bikes were stolen from Kochi, another six were stolen from Salem, Chennai and Bengaluru.
Rishad, the accomplice, identifies the bike to be stolen and passes the information to Shiras who arrives from Tamil Nadu on the train. "He steals ordinary bikes to reach from the railway station to the place spotted by Rishad. He leaves the other bike and steals the Bullet bike. After stealing the Bullet bike, he crosses the Tamil Nadu border via Palakkad before dawn," said the assistant commissioner explaining the modus operandi.
Money from the sale of stolen Bullet bikes was used for procuring drugs and living a luxurious life. Police used CCTV cameras and other modes to identify the accused. "We are coordinating with our counterparts in Tamil Nadu to recover all the 11 stolen Royal Enfield Bullet bikes. It was after several days of effort that we arrested Shiras from Tamil Nadu," Ravindranath said.
Shiras was involved in drug cases registered by the excise department in Kattappana and Palakkad. Apart from this, 11 cases were registered against him in various police stations at West Kochi for snatching and rape. He went absconding after the trial in nine criminal cases started at various courts.
The accused was produced before the court and was remanded to judicial custody. "We will seek custody of the arrested persons. We suspect the involvement of Shiras in more bike theft incidents. We will also have to take him to Tamil Nadu as part of the recovery of the bikes. People who helped Shiras in selling stolen bikes in Tamil Nadu will be traced and arrested," a police officer said.