Police bust bicycle theft ring, arrest three suspects in Pratapgarh district

Udaypur police in Pratapgarh district have cracked a bicycle theft ring with the arrest of three suspects and the recovery of seven stolen bicycles. The arrested men, identified as Ravi Maurya (26), Lalji Patel (25), and Dharmendra Saroj (32), all residents of Nasirabad police station area in Raebareli district, were caught red-handed on August 27 while attempting to sell stolen bicycles.

The breakthrough came after Jay Singh, a resident of Mathiya Kishungarh, filed a complaint on August 26 reporting that two bicycles belonging to him and his son had been stolen from outside their home. A police team led by Sub-Inspector Amit Dwivedi was deployed to investigate the case. The very next day, acting on a tip-off that three men were waiting near the Budhe Baba shrine on the Pura Bhojai route to sell stolen bicycles, police cordoned off the area and nabbed all three suspects along with bicycles in their possession.

Following interrogation and based on information provided by the accused, police recovered three bicycles from the spot and four more hidden in nearby gardens and bushes. Jay Singh identified two of the recovered bicycles as his stolen property, while Om Prakash, a resident of Kumbhi Aima, recognized one Hercules bicycle that had been stolen from him about 15 days earlier.

During questioning, the trio confessed to working together in stealing bicycles and selling them to passersby, splitting the proceeds among themselves. Police records reveal that all three accused have multiple cases registered against them in Pratapgarh and Raebareli districts under various sections including theft, kidnapping, POCSO Act, Arms Act, and Excise Act. The operation was conducted under the supervision of Superintendent of Police Deepak Bhukar, Additional SP Western Brijnanandan Rai, and Circle Officer Lalganj Rajeev Dwivedi, with the police team comprising constables Jiyan Kumar, Pramod Kumar, Gopal Giri, and Akhilesh Kumar Pandey alongside Sub-Inspector Amit Dwivedi.