New Delhi:
A Chinese language nationwide, suspected to be a member of an organised international in-flight theft syndicate, has been arrested for allegedly stealing debit and bank cards from fellow passengers throughout a flight from Hong Kong to New Delhi, police stated on Saturday.
The accused, 30-year-old Benlai Pan, was arrested upon arrival on the Indira Gandhi Worldwide (IGI) Airport right here on Could 14 following complaints from a number of passengers aboard Air India flight AI-315, they stated in an official assertion.
Pan was travelling with three different Chinese language nationals — 51-year-old Meng Guangyang, 42-year-old Chang Mang, 45-year-old and Liu Jie — all of whom had been detained and questioned, officers stated.
In keeping with authorities, the group is suspected to be working collectively as a part of a global in-flight theft racket.
“Air India’s safety group alerted the IGI Airport police about suspicious actions involving 4 Chinese language nationals on the flight. One of many passengers, Prabhat Verma, who was seated at 12C, reported {that a} bank card had gone lacking from his bag,” Extra Commissioner of Police (IGI) Usha Rangnani stated in an official assertion.
“Verma additionally identified suspicious behaviour by a passenger seated at 14C, who was ticketed for seat 23C,” the assertion stated.
The lacking bank card was later recovered from beneath seat 14C, the place Pan was discovered seated, she stated.
One other passenger, Prashi, reported that her mom’s debit card had additionally gone lacking. A 3rd passenger, Nafeez Fatima, supplied a video displaying Pan allegedly opening overhead bins and rummaging by cabin baggage through the flight, the officer stated.
Throughout interrogation, Pan confessed that they booked long-haul worldwide transit flights to focus on sleeping passengers and entry unattended cabin baggage. The group unfold themselves throughout the cabin to keep away from suspicion and discarded stolen playing cards after making an attempt to make use of them, she added.
A case has been registered underneath related sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) on the IGI Airport police station, police stated.
Cell phones, wallets, and different belongings of the suspects have been seized for forensic examination. Worldwide coordination is underway to research their doable involvement in related incidents globally, they additional stated.
Whereas Benlai Pan has been arrested, the roles of his three associates are underneath scrutiny. Immigration authorities throughout the nation have been alerted, and liaison has been established with embassies and international regulation enforcement businesses, police added.
(Aside from the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV employees and is revealed from a syndicated feed.)