Udupi: Shirva Police have arrested three youths from Bengaluru for allegedly driving away without paying ₹4,711 after filling diesel at a fuel station in Kurkal near Shankarpura. Police have also seized the Ford EcoSport allegedly used in the offence.

The incident took place on the night of June 27, and the accused were traced and arrested following a technical investigation.

Diesel filled, payment allegedly avoided

The arrested accused have been identified as Mohammed Riyaz (26), a resident of Kotekar in Shirva, Mohammed Afraaz (23) of Bhoothabettu in Shirva, and Aashil (21), a resident of Ambagilu in Udupi.

According to the police, the trio arrived at a fuel station in Subhash Nagar, Kurkal village in Karkala taluk at around 9.10 p.m. in a white Ford EcoSport (KA-14-MB-8452).

The fuel station is owned by Daniel C. Ammanna and managed by Ashish (27), a resident of Mangaluru.

Police said one of the passengers seated in the rear of the vehicle asked fuel station employee Shashank to fill diesel into the SUV.

After diesel worth ₹4,711.09 was dispensed, the staff displayed a QR code to facilitate digital payment. The occupants allegedly scanned the QR code and asked for the bill. However, while the bill was being generated, they drove away without making the payment.

Case registered under BNS

Following a complaint, Shirva Police registered Crime No. 56/2026 under Sections 316(2) and 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023.

Investigators subsequently analysed technical evidence and other leads to identify and trace the suspects.

Accused traced to Bengaluru

A police team led by Karkala Deputy Superintendent of Police Vijay Prasad and Kapu Circle Inspector Azmath Ali, under the supervision of Shirva Police Sub-Inspector Manjunath Marabada, traced the accused in Bengaluru and arrested them.

The investigation team also included PSI Lohith Kumar C.S. and police personnel Harsha Bhat, Basavaraj, and Dariyappa.

Police seized the Ford EcoSport allegedly used in the offence.

The accused have been taken into custody and will be produced before the jurisdictional court.

Probe into similar incidents

Police are continuing their investigation to determine whether the three accused were involved in similar incidents of evading payment at petrol pumps elsewhere.

Officials said further inquiries are underway to establish if the suspects had targeted other fuel stations using the same modus operandi.