15 March,2018 10:45 AM IST | Mumbai | Rahul Mahajani
"Bade sahab ka gaadi hain... DCP hain.. Jaha hai vaha chhod do..." This was the message sent out by the anti-terrorism squad (ATS) through their informers to when one of their SUVs was embarrassingly stolen right outside the house of an inspector. Sure enough, the Bolero was found abandoned at the Bhiwandi bypass on Tuesday, nearly 20 days after it was stolen from Tilak Nagar. The vehicle was found intact, and even the police log book inside was untouched.
Unlike other police cars, ATS vehicles are unmarked, so it is quite likely that the thief drove off in the Bolero not suspecting that he was stealing from a cop. The thieves drove the white SUV around for 200 km, before they heard that it was a cop car, and decided to ditch it in the jurisdiction of Kapurbawadi police station in Thane.
Copspeak
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone VI) Shahji Umap confirmed, "The jeep has been found. Our probe is on to nab the suspects." Embarrassing though it must have been for the police to admit to the theft, it's a good thing they did, since it prompted the thieves to return the car. So far, the police had no luck in tracing the vehicle themselves. CCTV footage showed that the vehicle had passed Mulund toll naka around 3.20 am on February 23. In the footage, the police log book is easy to spot on the dashboard with the number, but the suspect is not visible clearly, a source said. The police suspect the vehicle went out from Mumbra, where there are no CCTV cameras.
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Investigation
The Tilak Nagar police, the Mumbai crime branch and the state ATS units are conducting parallel investigations to trace the thief. The police picked up history-sheeters in their investigation, and told them that it was very important that the police find the jeep. From there, the message was passed on to various gangs in the state and outside, asking them to return the jeep. The hunt for the culprits is still on. Apart from going through the CCTV footage, the police are also checking fingerprints on the car's mirrors and steering wheel, which they will cross-match with their criminal database.
Also read: Thieves steal cop's car, shoot him on Pune-Solapur Highway
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