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U.P. STF busts gang stealing cables worth ₹40L; 8 held
Acting on specific intelligence, the STF team intercepted the accused on the road connecting Prerna Smriti Park to Mal Jehta in the Dubagga police station area. A truck loaded with stolen 33 KV insulated cables, two cable drums, a hydra crane, two cars, a motorcycle, eight mobile phones, and ₹21,700 in cash were seized during the operation, a press release stated.
The Uttar Pradesh Police’s special task force (STF) arrested eight members of an inter-district gang accused of stealing high-voltage insulated cables and drums worth nearly ₹40 lakh from Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (UPPCL) installations in Lucknow and surrounding districts, officials said on Saturday.
Acting on specific intelligence, the STF team intercepted the accused on the road connecting Prerna Smriti Park to Mal Jehta in the Dubagga police station area. A truck loaded with stolen 33 KV insulated cables, two cable drums, a hydra crane, two cars, a motorcycle, eight mobile phones, and ₹21,700 in cash were seized during the operation, a press release stated.
The arrested gang members have been identified as Asif, Mohammad Shadil, Havaldar Dhuriya, Anees, Brijlal Gautam, Ramfer Yadav, Ishtiyaq, and Amir Khan.
STF officials said that in recent weeks, multiple reports were received regarding the theft of high-voltage underground cables installed by contractors of Madhyanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam Limited (MVVNL) in open areas of Lucknow and neighboring districts
On April 26, the team received reliable intelligence about the gang’s movements. Acting promptly, they conducted the operation in Dubagga and made the arrests without any confrontation, the STF said.
During interrogation, the accused allegedly confessed to operating as an organized gang targeting government cables and their heavy drums. Using trucks and hydra cranes, they transported the stolen materials and sold them at high prices outside Uttar Pradesh, mainly in Bihar, the officials said.
The gang’s leader has been identified as Pawan Kumar Tiwari, a resident of Siwan district in Bihar.
The accused also admitted to stealing two drums of 33 KV cable from near the FCI godown in the Sabzi Mandi area of Hardoi district on March 30 and another two drums from near Ghaila Pul under Madiaon police station area in Lucknow on April 20.
They confessed to selling stolen government property worth crores of rupees over a period of time, the officials added.
An FIR has been registered against the arrested individuals at Dubagga police station under sections 303(2), 2(30), 317(4), 121(1), 132, 351(2), 352, 307, and 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023.
The STF stated that further investigation is underway to trace other members of the gang and recover additional stolen materials. More arrests are expected as the probe continues.
