The Chamarajapet police arrested a 30-year-old man for stealing parked autorickshaws, using them to ferry passengers and abandoning them once they ran out of fuel.
The accused, Chandra, was caught by the beat police during a routine check on Saturday. The police stopped an autorickshaw on Ashwathkatte road. Chandra was driving the vehicle. He stopped the vehicle but then, tried to flee. The police team chased him and apprehended him.
He was taken to the police station for questioning.
He claimed to steal parked autorickshaws at night using duplicate keys.
"He would use the vehicle till it ran out of fuel and then abandon the auto in isolated places before looking for another vehicle," Inspector S.R. Tanveer said.
The accused had stolen as many as five autorickshaws in the past six months in Chamarajapet, Kalasipalya, Subramanyapura, Byatarayanapura and Giri Nagar police station limits.
He had even tried to sell some of the autos, but did not get past scrutiny from potential buyers, Inspector Tanveer said.
Based on his confession, the police recovered five autorickshaws and two bikes, which he had abandoned in isolated places on the outskirts of the city.
The accused was earlier arrested by Chamarajapet police in a vehicle theft case. He came out on bail and continued to steal vehicles, the police said.
