Police arrest youths heading to Bengaluru, seize 42 illegal SIM cards from them

MANGALURU: The Dharmasthala police have arrested a group of youths who were about to leave for Bengaluru on some undisclosed work from Thotattadi village of Neriya on Thursday, and recovered 42 illegal SIM cards from them.

The arrested are Rameez (20), Akbar Ali (24), Mohammad Mustafa (22), Mohammad Sadiq (27) and a 17-year-old minor boy.

Akbar Ali was in Dubai for two years and had returned four months ago. He used to buy illegal SIM cards by giving fake documents in the name of someone else while in Dubai. The police have intensified the investigation over illegal SIM collection as it linked to other countries.

Akbar Ali instructed his friend Mohammad Mustafa to buy SIMs. In turn, Mustafa asked his friend Rameez and Mohammad Sadiq to collect the SIMs. Accordingly, the two used to buy SIM cards from their relatives and friends on commission and then pass on the the SIM cards to Mustafa.

Later, on the instructions of Akbar Ali, Mohammad Mustafa would dispatch the SIM cards to people in Bengaluru by private buses. The revelations were made during preliminary investigation and police have intensified their probe.