The Virginian-Pilot
                             THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT 
              Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: Friday, September 23, 1994             TAG: 9409230643
SECTION: BUSINESS                 PAGE: D2   EDITION: FINAL 
SOURCE: (Staff)
                                             LENGTH: Short :   20 lines

CELLULAR BANDITS NABBED, SENTENCED, INCARCERATED

Bell Atlantic Mobile tells cellular bandits to beware. The mobile phone company says that stealing airtime will get you time - in the ``big house.'' The company points to Baltimore's Bhardwaj Esau, who was recently sentenced to 27 months in a federal prison, and his accomplice, Enayet Hussain Ahmed, who is serving seven months. The two stole thousands of dollars of cellular airtime over a two-day period in March. The cellular industry loses more than $1 million each day to such scams. by CNB