Indian Man Rents Car, Sells it Online, Then Steals it Back on the Same Night

July 7, 2016

A 28-year-old man is in police custody after stealing back the same car he sold online with a duplicate key.

The New Delhi man resorted to the con because his spa business is struggling to stay afloat. According to Hindustan Times, the BCA graduate rented a car and sold it on an ecommerce site. Of course, since he wasn’t the owner, Kumar had to steal the car back the same night from the person he sold it to.

Police eventually got word of the theft. Last week, authorities at the Dwarka Sector 23 station examined the vehicle’s record, but found that the details corresponded to another Mahindra XUV that was owned by a Delhi resident.

An officer explained what seemed to be going on. He said:

“The owner was not lying. He had bought the car through the site. It was stolen the same night. Initially we thought he was sold a stolen vehicle but later we suspected the seller may have stolen the same car from the new owner. We registered a case and began probe.”

As the investigation went on, police received a tip regarding a man planning to sell a Mahindra XUV and that’s how Kumar’s golden days of sale came to an end.

Kumar, the son of a retired captain of the Indian Army, revealed that he rented the car two months back when his massage parlour and spa in Faridabad was faltering. He then looked for a similar automobile and took note of its details to provide false information to his buyers.

Following his first sale, Kumar stole the car back from its new owner within seven hours of the transaction. Using GPS and a duplicate key, Kumar was able to track down the vehicle and retrieve the rental car. The person responsible for renting the auto to Kumar had no knowledge of the scheme.

Car theft is rampant in India. In the first quarter of 2016, 9,714 vehicles were stolen in Delhi, Times of India reported. This number is a huge leap from last year’s 6,724. During the period, a vehicle was stolen every 13 minutes and only 4% were recovered, the outlet said.

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