Three persons were arrested on Saturday for allegedly stealing four-wheelers and replacing their registration numbers with the vehicles scrapped by insurance companies, before selling them in the second-hand market. The accused are history sheeters who have cases against them across several police stations. They were produced before the local court and remanded in police custody. Police said the three would purchase four-wheelers that were scrapped by insurance companies, with proper paperwork. They would then steal similar vehicles and use the registration numbers of the scrapped vehicles for the stolen ones. “Since both the vehicles looked similar, no one would suspect anything. They would then sell this vehicle as second hand,” an officer said. After running the racket since the past year, the Azad Maidan police in south Mumbai received a tip off about the gang. Police laid a trap and arrested Hafizul Jafri (40), Shamim Ansari (36) and Sannam Khan (22). During interrogation, the police found that the trio were involved in several such cases in the past. “We have recovered four-wheelers worth Rs 23.5 lakh from the accused,” the officer added. For all the latest Mumbai News, download Indian Express App

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