The Bapatla district police on Tuesday handed over 166 mobile phones worth ₹33.2 lakh to their owners as part of the fifth phase of the Mobile Recovery and Distribution programme.

District Superintendent of Police (SP) B. Umamaheshwar distributed the recovered devices to the owners at the district police headquarters. He said that the police machinery had considerably improved its recovery performance through technology-driven policing.

Addressing the gathering, the SP noted that mobile phones had become indispensable in everyday life, serving as tools for banking, education, employment, business and personal communication. Losing a phone often causes distress due to the sensitive personal information stored in it, he said.

To tackle the issue, the district police constituted a special team led by a Circle Inspector and personnel skilled in technology. Working jointly with local police, the team successfully traced and recovered lost and stolen phones, including those located in other districts and States.

The SP said Bapatla police had recovered 1,125 mobile phones worth ₹2.25 crore in five phases, improving the district’s recovery rate from 30% to nearly 70%.

He urged the public to avoid purchasing second-hand mobile phones from suspicious persons and warned shop owners against unlocking devices without proper verification, stating that dealing in stolen phones could attract criminal charges.