37 held for mobile phone thefts during New Year celebrations in Goa; 90 handsets worth Rs 1.5 cr recovered

Panaji: A total of 37 persons were arrested for allegedly stealing mobile phones of New Year revellers in the northern part of Goa and 90 handsets worth Rs 1.5 crore were recovered from them, a senior police official said on Monday.

Three gangs from Maharashtra, West Bengal and the Rajasthan-Delhi belt were operating from the coastal state with the aim of stealing mobile phones of tourists who arrived here for New Year celebrations, Superintendent of Police (North) Nidhin Valsan said.

"Thirty-seven persons were arrested in the limits of Calangute and Anjuna police stations and 90 mobile phones worth Rs 1.5 crore were seized from them. Deputy SP Vishwesh Karpe and Calangute police inspector Paresh Naik took extraordinary efforts to nab the accused," he said.

"They were arrested on the basis of intelligence inputs received. All three gangs were operating independently. During New Year, Anjuna police station received 90 mobile phone theft complaints, while the figure was 100 for Calangute," Valsan said.

However, he pointed out that the number of theft cases this year were almost half when compared to last year, while the recoveries had increased.