Three arrested for stealing mobile phones worth Rs 1.5 crore bound for Gurugram
The Delhi Police have arrested three men and recovered 604 brand-new Vivo smartphones worth approximately Rs 1.5 crore that were stolen while in transit to an e-commerce platform's warehouse in Gurugram.
The theft came to light after a warehouse manager registered an e-FIR at the Sector-23 police station in Dwarka on June 20, reporting that approximately 1,500 mobile phones had gone missing during delivery.
According to the police, about 4,500 phones had been loaded onto a transit truck. The driver, allegedly working in connivance with his associates, removed a portion of the consignment before abandoning the truck with the remaining cargo in Gurugram and fleeing.
To track down the suspects, investigators formed a special team that analyzed footage from more than 200 CCTV cameras along the truck's most probable route. This extensive analysis led officers to a pickup vehicle used to transport the stolen phones.
Personnel from the Knowledge Park police station in Gautam Budh Nagar initially intercepted the vehicle and recovered a portion of the stolen consignment, arresting three suspects identified as Pankaj alias Dhirender, Anand alias Rudresh, and Mohit alias Pundir.
The Dwarka police subsequently obtained production warrants to formally arrest and interrogate the three men. Based on information revealed during questioning, the police team conducted a raid on a garden in Bhighepur village, located in Uttar Pradesh's Bulandshahr district, where they recovered 604 concealed Vivo mobile phones.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Dwarka) Kushal Pal Singh said, "The prompt coordination with the Uttar Pradesh Police, extensive CCTV analysis, sustained interrogation of the accused persons and timely follow-up resulted in the successful recovery of a substantial portion of the stolen property."
Police verification of the suspects' criminal backgrounds revealed their involvement in similar transit thefts of mobile phone consignments across multiple states. Investigators believe the men belong to a larger syndicate targeting high-value electronic shipments and are working to identify the remaining members and locate the rest of the stolen phones.
