Panipat police have arrested three individuals and busted an inter-district gang responsible for stealing wires, motors, and other equipment from agricultural tubewells, solving 132 theft cases across three districts.
The gang, which operated for the past three years, was apprehended for the first time following a tip-off. The arrested suspects are:
Goon Sagar, originally from Jamalpur, Darbhanga, Bihar, currently renting in the Aath Marla area of Panipat
Gulbahar, native of Ladwa, Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh, residing in Shastri Colony, Panipat
Sahil, from Sisauli, Shamli, Uttar Pradesh, living in Manmohan Nagar, Babail Road, Panipat
Panipat Superintendent of Police Lokendra Singh announced the arrests at a press conference on Tuesday. The trio was caught on Monday at Kala Amb Chowk, where they were allegedly preparing to sell copper wire stolen from agricultural cables.
During interrogation, the accused confessed to involvement in 72 thefts in Panipat, with cases reported across Israna (39), Samalkha (22), Matlauda (6), Sadar (3), and Sunauli (2) police station areas. They also admitted to over 60 similar thefts in Karnal and Kurukshetra districts.
One notable solved case involved cable theft from a tubewell in Dahar village in February, reported to Israna police station.
The gang conducted daytime reconnaissance of fields and returned at night to steal equipment, often using two or three members as lookouts to alert the others in case of danger. Investigations reveal the group has been active since 2022.
Police sources stated that the accused are drug addicts who financed their addiction by stealing valuable agricultural equipment.
