Hyderabad cops arrest Karnataka photographer for stealing camera equipment
Hyderabad: The Mirchowk police arrested an interstate individual on Tuesday, July 30, for stealing camera equipment worth Rs. 9 lakhs from a rental service in Yousufguda.
The accused individual has been identified as B. Chalapati (41), a photographer from Bangalore, Karnataka.
The police recovered the stolen camera equipment, including the Sony A7S3 camera, G-Master lens, memory cards, card reader, batteries, chargers, and a Samsung Galaxy A05s smartphone from Chalapati’s possession.
According to the police reports, Puppala Rakesh, a photographer residing in Hyderabad, filed a complaint with the Mirchowk police on July 25, 2024. He reported that his uncle, P. Dathatri, who owns Unique Dreaming Camera Rentals, had rented out a Sony A7S3 camera with a G-Master lens and hired Rakesh for a photoshoot arranged by a client named Manoj.
Manoj, who turned out to be using a fake name, had contacted Dathatri through social media and agreed to pay Rs. 9,000 for the rental and photoshoot. On the morning of July 25th, Rakesh was picked up from the rental service by a cab arranged by Manoj also known as Chalapati.
During the photoshoot, which took place at various locations in Hyderabad, Manoj allegedly asked Rakesh to take photos at Salarjung Museum and kept his bag containing the camera equipment in the cab. However, when Rakesh returned from the museum, he found both Manoj and the bag missing.
The investigation revealed that the accused, B. Chalapati, was facing financial difficulties due to a lack of work for the past six years. He allegedly devised a plan to steal cameras by posing as a customer and targeting photographers who advertise their services online.
Chalapati reportedly traveled to Hyderabad from Bangalore using fake ID proofs and contacted Dathatri under the fake name Manoj. He rented the camera equipment for a day, making a partial payment of Rs. 3,000 through UPI to an unknown person’s phone number.
After stealing the equipment, Chalapati attempted to sell it in Jagadish Market but was apprehended by the Mirchowk police at the MGBS Bus stand before he could do so. Chalapati is being brought before the court for further proceedings.
The arrest was made under the supervision of Ms. Sneha Mehra, Dy. Commissioner of Police, South Zone, along with Shaik Jahangir, Addl. Dy. Commissioner of Police, South Zone, Venkateshwar Rao, Asst. Commissioner of Police, Mirchowk Division, and Inspector R. Ravinder of Mirchowk PS. The team also included Detective Inspector N. Dilip Kumar, DSI L. Narsimha, ASI Shiva Shankar, Head Constable Ch. Srinivas Rao, Police Constables Santhosh, B Anil Kumar, and V. Sai Kiran Goud.
