Bengaluru: A 31-year-old man, who used to dupe vehicle owners by posing as a used car dealer and flee with their four-wheelers, has been arrested by Jalahalli police.
Nine vehicles and worth Rs 60 lakh have been recovered from the accused, identified as Prabhakar alias Stephen Harris, a resident of Akkayappa Garden at Mohan Kumar Nagar in Yashwantpur.
A complaint was filed by one Srinivas on April 25 that his car was stolen by a man posing as a buyer. He disappeared with the vehicle under the pretext of taking a test drive. Based on the complaint, the police launched an investigation.
“After gathering details of similar offences in the past and based on credible information, the accused was nabbed. He has a history of approaching car owners claiming that he is a second hand car dealer. He used to convince them that he would help them sell their car and then escape with the vehicle under the pretext of taking a trial run to check its condition. He has sold the stolen cars to others claiming he was the owner and had not provided any documents to them,” the police said.
The accused was earlier arrested by the Kalasipalya and Rajarajeshwarinagar police for similar offences. Eight cars and a tempo traveller have been recovered from the accused.
