TikTok videos of 'Tech-savvy' thief helped Madhya Pradesh police to track him down from Gaziabad

TikTok is back in news and this time for reason its makers in China and users in India would feel proud of. ByteDance's popular video app helped Madhya Pradesh police in arresting a habitual thief from Gaziabad in Uttar Pradesh. Here's how it happened: accused Mukesh Safi - a native of Bihar - along with his associates was engd in multiple incidents of ft in running trains in Madhya Pradesh's Ratlam and Ujjain rail divisions throughout February and March this year.

Safi used more than three dozen phones with his SIM card to hide his location. But one thing Safi could t control was his craze for TikTok videos, which essentially led to his arrest Safi was very active on Facebook and he regularly used to upload his TikTok videos on Facebook. When police learnt that he used stolen cell phones to record and upload his TikTok videos on Facebook, police identified him through his online videos.

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Government Railway Police (GRP) sought help from cyber cell, which provided CCTV camera foot as well as mobile surveillance to capture Safi. He was also accused of stealing cash and valuables worth Rs 2.25 lakh in different cases registered against him. Safi - a 'Tech-savvy' thief was active primarily on Mumbai-Delhi route. He used to have his SIM installed in around three dozen handsets so that he could avoid his location from getting traced by Police.

However, one of his gang members Qayyum who was previously arrested had tipped off Police about Safi's craze for TikTok videos. Police n considered tracking Safi's social media activities to track him down.

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Meanwhile, TikTok has collaborated with independent youth volunteer n-profit organisation Bhumi to launch #CleanIndia Campaign. It aims to push TikTok's community to contribute to Swachh Bharat Mission "to achieve universal sanitation cover and draw focus on it in country."

“TikTok is committed to fostering constructive change in India through its platform and we are delighted to collaborate with Bhumi for this significant campaign," TikTok India said.