The theft of several cell phones on the same bus of the P-11 route, heading to Alamar in East Havana, ended this week with one man arrested. However, paradoxically, the phones could not be recovered, as reported on Facebook by the profile Transportación Habana.
The incident occurred shortly before two in the afternoon on Tuesday, July 29.
The source revealed that "the bus was at the station Cuba and Chacón," and that "a check was conducted on all passengers."
Approximately at 2:30 p.m., once the procedure was completed, passengers were allowed to reboard the vehicle to continue their journey.
A subject was detained, "but the victims' belongings did not appear", concluded the official source without providing further explanations about the incident.
In the comments section of the post, several users shared similar experiences and highlighted the modus operandi that could explain why no phone was found in the possession of the arrested man, despite being allegedly the perpetrator of the thefts.
An internet user commented that the thefts are not carried out by a single individual, but by organized groups. "It's not just one person; there are several. One steals, and the others provide backup. It's similar to a pickpocket," he explained.
"I got on a bus with my 13-year-old kids, and when I looked, they were unzipping my backpack. A woman and a young man were doing it. Thank God I saw it. They would have left me without a dime. Even women are complicit in helping the man who is stealing," reported a woman who was almost a victim while traveling with her children in a similar theft.
"Remember that they don’t work alone; there are two or more who are stealing. They should lock him up for a while so he talks," noted a third internet user.
In recent years, cell phone theft on buses has become an increasing concern for citizens in Cuba, particularly in urban areas like Havana.
Buses, which are often overcrowded due to a shortage of transportation and high demand, have become the ideal setting for criminals to commit thefts without being easily detected.
Thieves take advantage of times of high congestion, such as rush hours, to steal phones from pockets, backpacks, or wallets, acting quickly and discreetly.
In many cases, they even use sharp objects to open backpacks or bags without the victim noticing until it's too late.
This phenomenon has been repeatedly reported by passengers, who are calling for greater vigilance and response from the police.
The black market has facilitated the resale of these stolen devices, whether complete or dismantled for their parts.
Although there are mechanisms to report theft, such as blocking the IMEI, their effectiveness largely depends on whether the victim acts quickly and has the necessary information, which is not always the case.
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