Shady sellers : Flea markets circulating stolen gadgets

Laptops, smartphones sold at unreasonably low prices are usually procured through illegal means

LAHORE:

Even though the availability of cheap laptops and smart phones is nothing short of a blessing for low-income students and professionals seeking affordable connectivity devices for vocational purposes, the large-scale sale of stolen gadgets in flea markets across the provincial capital has drastically raised the stakes of making a second-hand purchase.

In Lahore, flea markets have always been a popular sight across many areas in the city, where make-shift stalls are setup every Friday and Sunday, offering a variety of food items, household necessities and even electronic gadgets at substantially reduced prices to low-income groups facing budget constraints.

In recent times however, multiple flea markets located in old areas like the Container Market and Hall Road have gained notoriety for selling and buying stolen laptops and smartphones with altered International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) numbers, which risk landing the involved parties in legal trouble in case they are caught.

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“Every day two or three incidents involving the sale of a stolen mobile phone with a tampered IMEI are reported in our market,” shared Javed Iqbal, a businessman from the Hall Road Market, who further claimed that traders tried their best to investigate the legality of the sold items through the e-gadget yet so many cases were arising.

“Even though some cunning thieves are clever enough not to bring stolen items for trade, some who do have either bought the stolen mobile from someone they know in ignorance or from an unknown dealer at a footpath or the Sunday Bazaar,” concurred Haji Ashraf, another shopkeeper.

Other traders at the Hall Road also claimed that earlier several illegal Afghan businessmen were involved in the sale of stolen mobile phones and laptops and the police would occasionally crackdown against them.

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According to the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority (PTA), almost 29.56 million stolen mobiles were identified with duplicated IMEIs in 2022 through the mobile device authentication, registration, and blocking system (DIRBS).

Sellers like Dost Mohammad Khan however, deny the claims that flea markets were circulating stolen goods. “I import laptops from different countries through the Iran border and keep them stored in warehouses in Lahore. I give all my customers a one month warrantee,” assured Khan, who sells laptops at the Sunday Bazaar.

Unsure of Khan’s claims, Mohammad Taha, a young man spotted purchasing laptops at the market revealed that he had already bought three or four laptops from here purely because of their convenience and affordability. “So far, my experience has been very good. The laptops available here are much cheaper than the normal market price and the variety is also greater,” said Taha.

Speaking to The Express Tribune on the sale of stolen gadgets, a spokesman of the Punjab Police said, “Since 2019, it is mandatory for all those involved in the purchase and repair of mobile phones to register themselves with the app called e-Gadget Monitoring System. The registered shopkeepers are obliged to store the identity information of all the people coming for sale or repair of their mobiles, including their IMEI numbers. There has been a significant decrease in the incidents of snatching mobile phones ever since this app has come into use.”

Published in The Express Tribune, January 8^th, 2024.