Small-time television actor Ajay Shukla was arrested on 31st March in Thane along with four accomplices for stealing debit cards from gullible users at ATMs and withdrawing cash. All of them were remanded to police custody.
Ajay and his accomplice, Dharmendra Dubey, ganged up with three autorickshaw drivers and decided to steal debit cards. They targeted victims inside kiosks in Bombay, Vasai-Virar, Palghar, Thane, Bhiwandi and Vapi (Gujarat), pretending to help customers who needed to withdraw cash. They would then steal the cards and exchange them with other stolen or outdated cards. They memorised the PINs and withdrew cash from the nearby ATMs.
Around 60 stolen debit cards were recovered from them by the crime unit of the Virar (Thane) police. The accused confessed to eight debit card thefts. They were booked under IPC sections 420 (cheating) and 34 (common intention).