Alappuzha: Notorious thief Subair (49), also known as ‘Pakki’ Subair, an accused in almost 200 cases, was nabbed by Mavelikkara Police from Mavelikkara railway station premises on Sunday. Subair, who was serving time in Thiruvananthapuram Central Jail, was released only two months ago. He was a suspect in thefts in Mavelikkara, Haripad, Ambalapuzha, Kareelakulangara, Nooranadu, Vallikunnam, Karunagappalli and Sasthamcotta.

Subair targets mainly commercial stores to steal money and other valuables. He is adept at breaking open locks, no matter what their make is. He commits the crime wearing just underwear. Trains are his preferred mode of transport. “He works alone and does not have any known partners. He used to have a family in Wayanad, but had to leave them as he could not stop his habit of thievery,” the official said.

Subair mainly targets stores as they present less of a risk than homes. But in Ambalapuzha, his target was a home as the family was out of station. The police had split into various teams and were observing stores and locales where Subair was most likely to visit. They were also keeping an eye on railway stations also, as Subair did his travelling on trains.

It was during one such search operation that Subair was spotted at Mavelikkara railway station. Subair, who attempted to flee after recognising the police officers, was nabbed after a chase. He was presented before the court and remanded into judicial custody. The police team who arrested Subair include SHO E Naushad; SIs Anil M S, Ajith Khan, Aby M S, Nisaruddin, Ramesh V; ASI Riyaz; SCPOs Ratheesh, Siyad, Bodhin, Jawahar, Ananthamurthy, Ajeesh, Karthik, Mohan, Salaluddin, Sharavanan, and Madhu Kiran; and Home Guard Sukeshan.