Ex-Taxi Driver's Descent into Crime: Stolen Phones and Firearms Seized

Saleem Khan, a former taxi driver from Old Mustafabad, Delhi, was arrested with a country-made pistol and 11 stolen mobile phones. Operating in northeast Delhi, Khan was apprehended by the crime branch following a tip-off. He used his contacts from his taxi-driving days to buy and sell stolen handsets.

Saleem Khan, a 36-year-old former taxi driver, was apprehended by Delhi police for possession of a country-made pistol and 11 stolen mobile handsets. The arrest followed a tip-off about mobile phone theft operations in northeast Delhi, according to Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Vikram Singh.

Khan, who is from Old Mustafabad, had transitioned from being a bike taxi driver to engaging in mobile phone theft and illegal sales. He was caught near Seemapuri roundabout after collecting the stolen phones from Bhopura in Uttar Pradesh. The police seized the phones, the firearm, and two live cartridges from him.

During his interrogation, Khan revealed he used contacts made while working as a taxi driver to operate in the stolen handset market. He bought phones from pickpockets operating in the Delhi Metro and buses, then sold them through an associate named Wasim. Authorities are now searching for Wasim and other members of this criminal network.