TIRUCHY: In what could spell caution for Tiruchy residents, over 830 mobile phones have so far been reported stolen in the city this year, which is almost a 70% jump from the figure recorded last year and almost double that stolen in 2022.
Complaining that their phones were snatched at crowded spots like the vegetable and fish markets, the ‘victims’ demand that the police set up awareness boards at such places to ensure the public remain vigilant. M Mohamed Hassan (33) of Murugapettai, who lodged a complaint with the Woraiyur police after allegedly losing his high-end smartphone in the fish market at the locality in September, said, "While I was buying fish, a juvenile stole the phone from my pocket.” Realising moments later that his phone was missing, he said he approached the police. “The police checked the CCTV cameras installed in the market and nearby streets to find that the juvenile had come to the market with a gang and stole the phone.”
Claiming that the phone snatchers had many a trick up in their sleeves to distract the victims, Hasan stressed the need to set up boards at public spots warning visitors of the presence of such offenders in their midst. Hasan is yet to recover his phone.
He, however, was not the lone person as another case of mobile theft was registered on the same day at the very police station he approached. Further, three other smartphones were reported stolen from the same market Hasan visited, that too on the same day. In another case reported around two weeks ago, three unidentified persons on a two-wheeler stole a 26-year-old woman’s mobile phone while she was walking near her house on Collectorate Road.
832 mobile theft cases were reported in the city as of October 31 this year
According to the police, the city has until October 31 recorded 832 cases of mobile phone theft since this January. The figure was 569 in 2023 and 457 in 2022. This year, the city police recovered 198 of the stolen mobile phones and handed them over to the owners.
On the mobile phone thefts, a senior city police official told TNIE, "In most cases, the accused are juveniles and easily escape in the crowd after stealing. They mainly target youngsters and college students.”
While mentioning the urge to own the latest smartphone driving some offenders to steal, the official said others sell them off at low prices. “The thieves are aware that the phones they stole can be traced and therefore sell them immediately. The IMEI number of stolen phones is also tampered upon using software. Victims are encouraged to file cases through the Central Equipment Identity Register (CEIR) as well. We are taking action to nab the suspects at the earliest," the official added.