Date:23/08/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/08/23/stories/2008082359330300.htm

Tamil Nadu

High-brow traveller and low-brow act

Passengers who think their baggage will be safe in upper class compartments were proved wrong, writes S. Vijay Kumar

When this passenger found share certificates worth about Rs.1.5 crore and in another instance, a demand draft for Rs.40 lakh from baggage stolen on trains, he promptly sent them to the respective owners by speed post.

An ex-serviceman who took retirement on medical grounds, Sunil Kumar alias Kumar (47) of Thiruvananthapuram was a Good Samaritan for sometime, but more a habitual offender notorious for bag-lifting in Southern Railway.

Many of those passengers who thought that their baggage would be safe in upper class compartments were proved wrong. For years, this high-profile passenger gave a tough time to the Government Railway Police.

His modus operandi was simple. He would purchase a confirmed ticket in three-tier air-conditioned coach on trains in the Thiruvananthapuram-Chennai Central/Egmore sectors and travel as a genuine passenger. He would study the profile of passengers in the compartment and select one or two baggage that could probably contain valuables. Shortly after midnight, Kumar would remove the baggage and get down at stations en route. In case the baggage was fastened, he would use sharp-edged gadgets to unlock them with ease.

“He was operating for nearly 10 years. With a confirmed ticket, Kumar would reach the station early and observe the movement of passengers. After fixing the target, he would settle down and commit the theft at a convenient time,” says Deputy Inspector General of Police (Railways), P. Sivanandi.

Kumar would stay in a hotel and sell the stolen articles through an agent in T. Nagar. “His target would be cash, jewellery, laptop and mobile phones. Based on a specific input, we formed a special team that arrested Kumar when he was getting down with a stolen baggage. Jewels, laptops and mobile phones were seized from the accused,” Mr. Sivanandi said. There were a few more suspects who indulged in bag lifting in upper class coaches and efforts were on to nab them, he added. Railway police personnel were also travelling in plainclothes on many trains to keep tabs on habitual offenders.