Member of auto-lifters gang held

New Delhi, Aug 30 (PTI) A member of an auto-lifters gangthat used sophisticated technology to steal particular makesof a prominent car brand has been arrested, police said today. "A police team that was working on cases of vehicle theftunder a special drive arrested the accused Sagir, 33, fromSambhal in UP," AK Singla, DCP (north east) said. "The gang including Sagir, and yet to be arrested membersSafar and Zaidi used to roam about in the areas of east,north-east and outer Delhi’s Rohini in search of cars parkedaway from residential areas," the officer said. After forcefully opening the cars of their choice insecluded areas with the help of a drill machine, they wouldremove the caps of the steering lock. Safar would use a laptop and a master key preparedthrough verifying the key data of the car, to start and moveaway the car. He knew technical specifications of the keys ofthe cars as he worked in a prominent car marker’s workshop,the officer said. The stolen cars were parked near Dilshad Garden area andlater taken to be sold to receivers in Sambhal. The accused would get upto Rs 1.20 lakh for a new car andlesser amount for older ones. Sagir was believed to havestolen around 200 cars as he was active since 2009, he said. Further investigation is underway and efforts are beingmade to arrest the other accused, he added. PTI VITIKA