Thane: The Thane crime branch unit-2 has arrested a chain snatcher from the Irani syndicate and has detected a total of 15 cases of chain snatching along with cases of bike thefts, cellphone snatching, and has recovered a stolen booty worth Rs 24 lakh.
Accused Abbas Jafri, 23, a resident of Shantinagar was netted by crime branch team led by Sachin Gaikwad, said Shivraj Patil, DCP (crime).
Another accused in the case is currently absconding and the police have launched a manhunt to nab him.
Alarmed by the surge in chain snatching incidents, the cops coordinated with the crime branch to curb the rising menace.
Following the registration of the chain snatching case, senior inspector Sachin Gaikwad, scanned the CCTV footage as well as other leads based on human intelligence, and zeroed in on the accused. On the basis of the information, the sleuths laid a trap at Khan compound and arrested Abbas Jafri in the wee hours.
The interrogation of Abbas Jafri led the police to detect as many as 15 chain snatching cases, as well as three cases of motorcycle theft, four cases of mobile snatching. The cases were registered with the various police stations in Bhiwandi, Kalyan, Thane and Badlapur.
The modus operandi of the accused was that they would identify the target and upon finding them alone they would speed past them on a bike and snatch their chain.
