Police busts car theft syndicate

NEW DELHI: The Delhi Police’s Crime Branch has dismantled a syndicate involved in inter-state auto theft with the arrest of 13 individuals including employees of Cars24 and CarDekho company and recovered 20 stolen luxury cars.

The group had been using online car-selling platforms like Cars24 and CarDekho to sell the stolen vehicles, using sophisticated methods

to evade detection.

According to the police, the syndicate is believed to have sold 40-50 high-end vehicles, with investigations still ongoing to trace additional cars.

The operation led by Inspector Ashish Sharma from the Delhi Police Crime Branch targeted a syndicate involved in auto theft. They identified stolen vehicles by matching them with legitimate cars on online platforms, then created fake documents and tampered with identification numbers to sell them as legitimate on sites like Cars24 and CarDekho.

Prompted by two Hyundai Creta thefts, the investigation used technical surveillance and CCTV analysis. A stolen car traced to Anwar Qureshi, a key syndicate member, led to further inquiries revealing WhatsApp chats and suspicious bank accounts. Arrests included Puru Singh, caught selling a stolen car with fake plates, and Jayant Kumar Jena, along with employees of Cars24 and CarDekho facilitating sales.

In total, 20 vehicles were recovered, including Toyota Fortuners and Hyundai Cretas, along with incriminating materials like fake registration certificates.