Calangute: The Calangute police arrested a Karnataka native accused in 20 chain snatching cases from tourists on Thursday and succeeded in recovering most of the stolen property from the accused.
The accused, Azeez Asif, 32, a resident of Tumakuru, Karnataka, was traced and arrested using advanced investigative techniques, Calangute police said.
Asif, a habitual offender, allegedly committed snatching of valuables from tourists in five different cases in the last few days using a two-wheeler. During interrogation, he also admitted to having committed crime in the jurisdiction of Anjuna police station.
Calangute police said the accused Azeez Asif is a habitual offender with over 20 cases of theft and snatching in Goa and Karnataka. He was earlier arrested by Calangute police in 2019 in a theft case and by the Saligao and Anjuna police in 2021 for chain snatching. The accused was also booked for assaulting an inmate while undergoing judicial custody at Central Jail, Colvale, in 2022. Further investigations are on. PI Paresh Naik is conducting further investigations into the case under the supervision of DySP Vishwesh Karpe.
