New Delhi, Aug 19 (IANS): The Delhi Police on Friday said it has during this month arrested five people who made up an inter-state gang involved in stealing motor vehicles in the city and "rebirthing" them to be sold in the market.

Police also seized 20 luxury vehicles traced to the gang from various places, including Agra, Jaipur and Muzaffarnagar. 

According to the police, the accused would buy scrapped vehicles from insurance companies on auction to use their registration, engine and chassis numbers on vehicles they would steal -- a process known as "rebirthing".

The stolen vehicle, thus disguised, would then be sold off.

A senior police officer told IANS: "The gang was operating in the city for about one-and-half years and was involved in 30 cases of vehicle thefts. They would steal a vehicle of the same model and make as that of the scrap vehicle they got their hands on." 

"It became easier for them to put registration, chassis and engine numbers on the stolen vehicles as they had already obtained the original papers from the insurance companies."

The gang earned huge profit by selling the stolen vehicles, the officer said.

All five accused were arrested in Meerut in Uttar Pradesh. They have been identified as Sanjay Singh, 39, a resident of Ghaziabad, who owned a scrap car dealership in Meerut; Mobin, 34; Salim, 30; and Kasim, 30 -- all residents of Meerut -- and Manan, 32, a resident of Jamia Nagar in Delhi.

"Sanjay Singh was the mastermind who would buy scrap vehicles from the market," the officer said. 

Mobin obtained the engine and chassis numbers from the scrap and informed other members of the gang what model and make of the vehicle needed to be stolen, he said.

"Manan was earlier arrested in a case of murder and dacoity by the Special Cell. He spent over seven years in jail and came out of jail last year," the officer said.