Kerala man pawns phone for birthday celebration, steals railway items to arrange money to recover it; arrested

Railway Protection Force (RPF) and Punalur Railway Police have arrested two men accused of stealing railway materials and attempting to sell them to local scrapyards, following a tip-off that government property was being moved for illegal sale.

The arrested men have been identified as Ananthu (24) and Shobin (41), both residents of Avaneeswaram.

How the case came to light

Police had earlier received information about missing railway materials. During enquiries, officers learned that two individuals had reached scrapyards in Punalur with items belonging to the Railways.

A joint team led by the RPF Crime Branch Unit Circle Inspector and the Punalur Railway Police Station House Officer tracked down the suspects and took them into custody.

What interrogation revealed

During questioning, officers recovered the stolen railway materials. Police said that, to arrange money for Ananthu’s birthday celebrations, he had pawned his mobile phone for cash. To retrieve it, he took rails lying on railway land and transported them in his autorickshaw for sale. Shobin allegedly joined him as an accomplice.

Both men have been handed over to the RPF Punalur unit for further procedures and for the recovery of the remaining stolen materials.