Cops to seek theft accused in custody

Kochi: Aluva police will soon seek custody of the Uttar Pradesh resident who was arrested for withdrawing cash after stealing ATM cards for further investigation.Police sources said that, as per preliminary investigation, he has a few cases in the state, and a probe is on to find if he fits the modus operandi in other similar cases reported across the state.Imran Khan, 34, a resident of Aligarh, was arrested for stealing the wallet and phone of a Thrissur native from the storage space of his scooter on March 14. The victim had arrived at Aluva TCS iON Exam Centre for an exam when the theft occurred."We have found around 10 duplicate keys from him and most vehicles can be opened using them. He had things stolen from Coimbatore when we arrested him. He used to focus on stealing a combination of wallets and phones. He also had a phone with him with which he used to change the ATM PIN number," said an officer.The accused used to put SIM cards from stolen phones in his own phone and make the PIN change. Police tracked details of IMEI number of the phone used to make the switch to eventually reach the accused. Investigation is on into the IMEI number to find more details about his antecedents.Police said that similar thefts were reported in Aluva, Kollam-Kilikollur, Thrissur, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh.