Pratapgarh police arrest three men within 24 hours of roadside snatching

Pratapgarh police have cracked a snatching case within 24 hours of the incident and arrested three accused persons. The Manikpur police station team recovered a OnePlus mobile phone, cash worth ₹1,550, an Aadhaar card, a ladies' purse, keys, and the motorcycle used in the crime from the possession of the arrested men.

According to police, on the night of August 23, Niba Kausar, a resident of Kachhi Patti in Manikpur, was returning home from her maternal house in Kunda by e-rickshaw. Near Tewaripur, three young men riding a black-colored motorcycle attacked from behind and snatched her purse. The purse contained her mobile phone, cash, Aadhaar card, house keys, and other belongings. Following her complaint, a case was registered at Manikpur police station and an investigation was launched.

Acting on a tip-off from an informer, police cordoned off the area near Mamauli canal culvert on August 24 and apprehended the three motorcycle-borne accused. The arrested persons have been identified as Monu Kumar Patel, 21, Rajesh Kumar Patel, 22, and Mukesh Kumar, 19, all residents of village Mamauli under Manikpur police station in Pratapgarh district.

During interrogation, the accused admitted that they had followed the woman travelling by e-rickshaw and snatched her purse when they found a deserted spot. They later divided the cash among themselves and removed the SIM card from the mobile phone before discarding it. Police recovered all the stolen items from the accused. The IMEI number of the recovered mobile phone was cross-checked with the complainant's invoice and found to match.

Based on the recovery, police added Section 317(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita to the case. The motorcycle was seized under Section 207 of the Motor Vehicles Act after the accused failed to produce valid documents. The operation was conducted under the guidance of Superintendent of Police Pratapgarh Deepak Bhukar and supervision of Additional SP West Brijnandan Rai and Circle Officer Kunda Shiv Narayan Vais. The arrest team included Sub-Inspectors Amarnath Singh and Amit Kumar Singh, along with constables Bhimrao, Rajesh Pal, and Praveen Kumar.