An idea changed their life, for the worse. P. Deepak Rao and Aditya Sheshadri, two youngsters desperate to cover up their business losses, were upset when a broker told them that they would not get more than Rs. 35,000 for their old Tata Sierra without a no objection certificate.
The vehicle would have fetched Rs. 50,000 if it had a NOC.
Wondering what the broker does with a vehicle lacking a NOC, they realised that he only dismantles and sells it as scrap.
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That gave them an idea that vehicles without NOC can be sold, even stolen vehicles.
From June 2011, the two along with an associate T. Vijay lifted 14 four-wheelers and 230 two-wheelers, North Zone DCP Ch. Srikanth said on Tuesday.
The trio’s arrest along with a person B. Srinivasulu, who purchased the stolen vehicles, helped the police recover six stolen cars and eight bikes.
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The rest of the stolen vehicles, investigators found, were sold as scrap. Deepak and Aditya purchased a bunch of keys without grooves and started stealing vehicles from different parking lots in Kushaiguda, Neredmet, Malkajgiri, Nacharam, Chilkalguda and Trimulgherry.
Set up garage
The two rented an independent building at Dammaiguda on the outskirts of Kushaiguda for Rs. 5,000 a month and turned it into a garage.
“They used to keep the stolen vehicles there and dismantle them using gas cutters. The engine and chassis numbers were erased so as to not leave any trace of evidence,” Trimulgherry Inspector P. Ravi Kiran, who busted the gang, said.
The scrap was segregated into iron, aluminium, copper, brass before being sold.
Deepak is the son of retired Lieutenant Colonel P. R. S. Rao.
A graduate, Deepak tried his luck in the IT sector by learning software programming before starting a business involving sale and service of computers at Kushaiguda.
Engineering dropout
His business partner, Aditya dropped out of third year mechanical engineering course. His father is a retired HAL manager.