Two caught for stealing copper cable worth ₹15 lakh from Delhi Metro construction site

NEW DELHI: The Delhi Police has arrested two men, including a habitual offender, for allegedly stealing around 1,200 metres of copper cable worth Rs 15 lakh from an under-construction metro site in central Delhi’s Sadar Bazaar area, an official said on Sunday.

The police said the accused loaded the cable onto a truck and fled on the intervening night of November 2 and 3. The complainant, Dev Singh, a supervisor with the construction firm, filed an e-FIR after discovering the material missing.

“During investigation, police scanned nearly 50 CCTV cameras from the site and adjoining areas. Footage showed two men loading the stolen cable onto a truck. One of them was identified as Randhir Singh, a crane operator at the site,” the officer said.

Based on technical surveillance, Singh’s mobile location was traced to his native village in Amritsar.

A police team conducted a raid there on November 8 and apprehended him, he said, adding that Singh (29) has been previously involved in four criminal cases, including those over a murder in Ludhiana and an ATM machine theft in Rajasthan’s Udaipur.

During interrogation, Singh allegedly disclosed the involvement of his co-worker Pankaj Kumar, who worked as a labourer and helped facilitate entry at night.

Kumar (29), a native of Bihar, was arrested from the construction site on November 10, the police said.

According to the official, Singh -- a drug addict -- was under financial stress and believed the cable theft would not be noticed immediately due to limited CCTV recording.

“He hid the stolen material at a house in Bhalswa Dairy,” the officer said, adding that the entire stolen copper cable has been recovered.