KATHMANDU: The traffic police today made public six four-wheelers which were recovered from elsewhere in the Valley and neighbouring districts over a period of one months.

The motorable vehicles were found in unclaimed state or were seized while being parked illegally or speeding illegally.

Also seized were light four-wheelers which had no any proofs of documents to claim their legality, according to SP Rabi Raj Shrestha, acting chief, Metropolitan Traffic Police Division.

Shrestha said the vehicles were seized during a special operation carried out by the department from September 22 to October 21.

Those seized included Semprolet Tamera (Ba 5 Cha 3996), Scorpio (Ba 4 Cha 8571), Balero (Ba 5 Cha 2621), Steam Car (Ba 4 Cha 2299), Maruti Van (Registration number not available) and Balero (Ga 1 Cha 1674).

"The police impounded the illegal vehicles at Nagdhunga, Banepa, Teku and Balaju, acting on a tip-off provided by locals and intelligence agents," SP Shrestha said.

Meanwhile, a special squad under the command of DSP Bibhuti Raj Pandey, chief of Theft Control Section at MDPD on Friday seized 10 two-wheelers in Sindhupalchwok district.

They were stolen from various places in the Valley in the last couple of months.

Of them, seven motorcycles were handed over to the respective owners today in the presence of mediapersons. The claimants, who produced valid documents at the MDPD, were given away their motorcycles.

Among the unclaimed were two motorcycles (Ba 14 Pa 4974 and Ba 12 Pa 2435) and one without registration number, police said.

SP Shrestha said that they had been keeping an eye on suspects.

The moves comes in the face of growing public outrage against law enforcement agencies which have been blamed for their ineffective handling of the gorwing theft and crimes in the city.

"We can book the guilty but we need to catch them red-handed," Shrestha said.

In their latest bid to nab the bike thiefs, the MDPD in association with civil police and locals, has intensified the operation.

SP Shrestha said the motorcycle-lifters were found to be selling two-wheelers they had stolen in the Valley to the people in neighbouring districts.

Meanwhile, the traffic police today handed over the seized four-wheelers to Department of Custom. The latter has been empowered to put the illegal and unregistered vehicles on auction as per the existing law.

Majority of the stolen vehicles have come from porous Nepal-India border. In doing so, the perpetrators often evade custom point.

In this connection, the police have made just one arrest thus far. The culprit has been identified as river, who has been handed over to DoC for legal action.

Similarly, SP Shrestha unveiled an existence of a huge illegitimate enterprise behind counterfeit dirving licenses. The number of counterfeit licenses seized totalled 1,354 in the Valley during the last two months.

Shrestha said all the culprits have been booked and over 50 are facing trials.