Residents of Mangaluru were in for a shock on the afternoon of Wednesday, January 12, when they witnessed a full-fledged cinema-style police chase through busy public areas, in broad daylight. The police chased a man who had reportedly stolen a mobile phone from a labourer, and visuals of the incident have gone viral on social media.
The videos show a police official, Assistant Reserve Sub-Inspector (ARSI) Varun Alva, who was patrolling the area around Mangaluru’s Nehru Ground, but immediately jumped out of his car when he saw someone in the distance. What followed was a chase through the back-alleys behind buildings, which culminated in the police officer running across a busy street to nab and pin down a man in a blue shirt.
The man was later identified as 32-year-old Harish Poojary, who along with his accomplices, was accused of stealing the mobile phone of a migrant worker from Bihar. The man whose phone was stolen reportedly worked at a granite factory, and he was sleeping at the Nehru Grounds when the incident occured. Reports also say that the man noticed that Harish was allegedly trying to snatch his phone, and he gave a hot chase to the thief. ARSI Varun Alva also saw this, and ran behind the escaping thief.
Cinematic chase sequence by Mangaluru cops to nab a thief.
— Deepak Bopanna (@dpkBopanna) January 13, 2022
Watch how they track , identify and chase down this man who had escaped after stealing valuables from a person near nehru maidan in the coastal city. pic.twitter.com/D9CPpY0TSW
The police note also said that another accused in the case, 20-year-old Shamanth from Attavar, has also been taken into custody. A stolen Samsung mobile phone was recovered from their possession. Upon further inquiry, it was found that they operate as a gang, and police are on the lookout for one another person named Rajesh, the note added. A case has been registered in Pandeshwar police station in this respect and an investigation is underway.