Thief arrested in Manimajra; Chandigarh Police recover 12 stolen bicycles

Chandigarh Police has arrested a serial bicycle thief and recovered 12 stolen bicycles in a single operation. The FIR was registered on Saturday under Sections 303(2) and 317(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

The complainant, 18-year-old Akash from Manimajra, reported that his bicycle was stolen from Labour Chowk around noon.

During the investigation, ASI Abhinav and his team traced and arrested the thief. The accused has been identified as Manoj Patel (28), a resident of Kishangarh who has been employed as a security guard. One stolen bicycle was recovered from his possession. Following interrogation, Patel confessed to a series of similar thefts and led the police to recover 11 more bicycles stolen from different locations across Chandigarh.

The accused revealed he is a drug addict and sold the bicycles to fund his addiction. He was produced in court and remanded to judicial custody. Police confirmed that he has a prior criminal record, including FIR under Section 379 of IPC.

Further investigation is ongoing, and a production warrant will be sought if he is linked to more thefts.