KARACHI: Victims reluctant to inform police: Cellphone thefts
KARACHI, March 15: Despite pledges and claims by the government regarding reduction in street crimes, incidents of robberies in broad daylight, especially cellphone snatching, have increased manifolds in Karachi.
According to the police, which often refuses to register cases of cellphone thefts and snatching incidents, on an average 20 to 30 mobile phone sets are being snatched in the city every hour. This ratio is increasing by the day.
Unfortunately, the victims of cellphone snatching have started taking the crime as a routine matter and majority of them hesitate in reporting the matter to the police, arguing that the police too was a party to the crime.
According to several victims of cellphone snatching incidents, persons with pistols in their hand had deprived them of their cellphones in broad daylight at busy intersections and bus stops of the city, while no one came to their rescue despite seeing the whole drama.
A journalist working for a local daily said he was awaiting a bus at Hassan Square at 5pm the other day when a person a motorbike came and asked him to handover his mobile phone to him.
“I asked him why and he showed me the gun. After taking my cellphone, he ordered me to board a bus,” he told.
It is worth mentioning here that Hassan Square roundabout is one of the busiest areas of the city and heavily guarded by the police and Rangers deployed at various positions along the road.
A police official told PPI on Tuesday on condition of anonymity that majority of cellphone snatchers were either persons having political affiliations or police personnel, who commit robberies as a part-time business.
“Since it is a low-risk job, people easily handover their mobiles simply on threats and often refrain from reporting the crime. It has become a lucrative job for the snatchers,” he said.
He further informed that the police never register FIR of mobile-phone theft or snatching incidents, making it impossible for authorities to judge the extent or ratio of the crime in a particular area in the city.
“Police officers at police stations simply mention the matter in the Roznamcha and try to satisfy the victims,” he said, adding that so far no organized gang of mobile-snatchers had been nabbed yet.
Some dealers of used mobile phones when contacted told that their business was thriving, as they were not bound to inquire about the purchase receipt of used cellphones being sold to them regularly.
It is simply a matter of a few minutes, people come to sell their mobiles, and they negotiate the price and complete the transaction.
Similarly, people regularly visit the market to get used cellphones and do not demand any receipt for the purchased handsets.
The used cellphones’ dealer claimed that the sale of cheap, ordinary and old cellphone sets was on the rise, as people did not want to lose their hard earned money.
When asked about the function of an IMEI number, he said software were available in the market, which make all jammed sets functional, adding that dealers charged Rs200 to 400 for making a jammed cellphone functional.—PPI
