Mumbai Police trace over 200 phones, hand over 160 to owners in Kandivli

The handover took place in the presence of Zone XI Deputy Commissioner of Police Sandeep Jadhav, Malvani Division Assistant Commissioner of Police Nita Padvi, Kandivali Senior Inspector Karan Sonkawade and the staff of Kandivali police station. Police said the recoveries were the result of sustained efforts and continuous follow-ups carried out under the supervision of Police Inspector Shekhar Shinde, Assistant Police Inspector Deepak Kadbane, Police Sub-Inspector Nitin Satam and their teams.

“From January 2025 to December 20, a total of 556 cases of mobile phone theft and missing complaints were registered at Kandivli police station. Using the Central government’s CEIR portal, we successfully traced around 200 mobile devices. Of these, 160 phones were returned to their owners after calling them to the police station,” a police officer said.

The officer added that another 40 traced mobile phones are currently in transit from various states and are expected to reach Mumbai via courier. “Once received, these phones will also be handed over to their respective owners,” the officer said.

How the system works

Explaining the process, a police officer said the CEIR portal is one of the government’s most effective initiatives for tracing lost and stolen mobile phones.

“If a phone is lost or stolen, citizens should register a complaint under the ‘Lost and Found’ section on the Mumbai Police website. A complaint ID is generated and sent to the registered email address,” the officer said. 

After submitting a printout of the complaint to the local police station, officers block the handset’s IMEI number on the CEIR portal. If anyone attempts to reuse the phone or insert a SIM card, an automatic alert is sent to both the police and the original owner.

“Using SIM card KYC details, we trace the person using the phone, issue a legal notice and direct them to surrender the handset. In many cases, phones are voluntarily returned via courier. If not, we coordinate with police in other states to seize the devices and send them to Mumbai,” the officer said.

To strengthen the initiative, Mumbai Police launched a special drive, deploying two teams from each police zone to different states to recover traced phones. The drive has resulted in a large number of missing and stolen mobiles being recovered and returned.

The recovered phones include brands such as Samsung, Realme, Redmi, OPPO, Vivo, iPhone and Poco. The total estimated value of the recovered devices is between Rs 20 lakh and Rs 25 lakh.

Police said the phones were recovered from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Jharkhand, and various parts of Maharashtra. Some devices were recovered with the help of local police in those states, while many were voluntarily returned by buyers through courier services.

Victims speak

Shobha Linga, who works in the healthcare industry, said her mobile phone was stolen three months ago. “Because of my work, my phone had important contact numbers of doctors. I felt extremely helpless,” she said.

“I also faced difficulty in reading, writing, and filing an online complaint due to a cataract. However, the police officers helped me register the complaint. Today, when I got my phone back, I felt immense happiness. I urge people to immediately approach the police and not lose hope,” she said.

Another victim, Prakash, said his mobile phone was stolen three months ago on SV Road. “There is no limit to my happiness today. I thank Mumbai Police and Kandivli police for their efforts,” he said.

A young man who also received his phone back said he had purchased the handset on EMI using a credit card about a year ago, after which it was stolen. “I am extremely happy to have received my phone back. Thanks to the Mumbai Police,” he said. 

160
No of handsets handed over to owners on Sat.

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