Police: 52 arrested for mobile tower equipment thefts in pan-India op

New Delhi: The Delhi Police’s Crime Branch has dismantled an inter state gang of thieves and arrested 52 individuals responsible for the theft of Remote Radio Units (RRUs), Base Band Units (BBUs), batteries, and other telecom equipment from mobile towers across multiple states.

An anonymous source tipped the Crime Branch of the Delhi Police about the thieves.

According to the police reports, the gang’s operations were extensive, having stolen and exported over 5,000 RRUs abroad, valued at around Rs 65 crore. Authorities successfully linked 256 theft cases across states, including Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Punjab, Odisha, and West Bengal.

The Crime Branch team, led by ACP Ramesh Lamba, played a pivotal role, arresting multiple individuals over several months. Notable arrests include Harish Chander and Mumtyaj alias Sonu, who had been active in Delhi and Haryana.

Further intelligence led to the apprehension of Zuber Malik, who allegedly managed the gang’s logistics, storing and inspecting stolen RRUs in Delhi before sending them abroad under falsified documents.

Additional arrests by the Central Range of the Delhi Police’s Crime Branch team included Puneet Kumar and Sumit Rana, who used sophisticated tools to dismantle equipment.

In June, Cyber Cell operations led to the recovery of weapons alongside telecom equipment, while Eastern Range-I apprehended Faizan, who confessed to selling stolen equipment to scrap dealers.

Prominent figures like Sagar Bhatnagar and Rajesh Shukla allegedly facilitated the transport of stolen equipment to Hong Kong. They used couriers to disguise RRUs as electronic switches, evading detection.