The police have arrested four members of a gang for allegedly stealing 29 mobile phones valued at R8.13 lakh from a shop in Thane district, a police officer said on Sunday. The theft took place in the early hours of July 28 at the shop located near a bank at Sai Residency in Bhiwandi area.

The thieves broke into the shop by drilling a hole in its wall and stole the handsets, Kongaon police station’s senior police inspector Atul Adurkar said. The thefts posed a challenge for the investigators due to high value of the goods and lack of initial clues, he said.