‘Uncle sends his regards’: Mumbai thieves use innovative WhatsApp codes to run pickpocket gang

Some perfectly normal phrases that may sound like casual greetings, like “uncle sends his regards” or “how is the weather today?”, carried a very different meaning for the ‘Dhakka gang’ of pickpockets in Mumbai. DCP Nalawade said the communication was less about planning the theft than checking whether it was safe to proceed. (Representative) According to a Times of India report, the MIDC Police Station team cracked the WhatsApp codes of the pickpocket gang, which ran a carefully orchestrated operation. The WhatsApp codes were allegedly used to know if every gang member was safe, if anyone was caught by the cops or if the day’s planning could be executed. The case revealed how Mumbai’s pickpockets have now gone high-tech, running their syndicate through smartphones and daily-changing WhatsApp codes. The daily changing code The investigation, led by DCP (West Zone 3) Datta Nalawade, revealed that the gang’s main kingpin contacted members every morning via WhatsApp. A new code was sent on WhatsApp every single day, like a one-time password. DCP Nalawade said the communication was less about planning the theft than checking whether it was safe to proceed. “The purpose wasn’t to discuss the theft. It was to find out whether
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