Two persons were arrested for allegedly stealing mobile phones from North Indian passengers at the Chennai Central Railway Station under the guise of helping them book train tickets, and transferring money using their UPI credentials.
According to police, Birbal, 23, a native of Jharkhand was at the Central station, along with a friend, to take a train to his hometown for Deepavali, on October 13. Two strangers, speaking in Hindi, approached them, claiming they could book the tickets for them. They asked for their mobile phones and UPI passwords, and fled with Birbal’s phone.
Later, the accused transferred ₹48,000 from Birbal’s bank account through his UPI app. Based on his complaint, the Chetpet police began an investigation, and arrested Rajkumar Ram, 24, and Dinesh Kumar Mukhiya, 21 —both from Bihar — near the Egmore railway station.
Investigation revealed that after committing the crime, the duo travelled to Andhra Pradesh, where they stole mobile phones from passengers sleeping at railway stations. A total of 18 mobile phones, including the complainant’s phones, were recovered.
Published – October 24, 2025 12:38 am IST
