Stolen bike 'recyclers' busted

The Anti-Vehicle Lifting Cell (AVLC) police have arrested four suspects for their involvement in a gang that dismembers stolen motorcycles to refurbish old ones having complete documents.

The arrested suspects were identified as Jamil, Ishaq, Abrar, and Sarfaraz Ali Sharafi. Jamil and Ishaq were responsible for stealing the bikes, while Abrar and Sharafi worked on the technical side - dismantling stolen bikes to refurbish legal ones. Two accomplices, Naseer and Ajaz, were absconding, and a search was underway, police said.

During the initial investigation, the arrested suspects confessed to have committed over 30 such incidents so far, AVLC officials told the media. Four stolen motorcycles including spare parts were recovered from their possession, they said.

The gang's modus operandi involved buying old motorcycles having registration papers, fitting parts from stolen bikes to repair them and sell the refurbished two-wheelers to people at weekly bike bazaars. The scrap left behind, particularly the chassis bearing the identity markings of the chassis number, were sold to the scrap dealers.

Besides the weekly bazaars at Haidery, New Karachi and Korangi, the suspects confessed to selling illegally refurbished bikes at Akbar Road too.