Navghar police have arrested Yusuf Akram Khan (25), Ibrahim Akram Khan (23), and Shahdab Altaf Khan (22) for stealing a live 11kV Ring Main Unit (RMU) belonging to the Maharashtra State Electricity Board (MSEB) from a godown in Mulund East. The stolen equipment, valued at Rs 5.61 lakh, was recovered within five hours of the theft.
The incident occurred last week at a godown on Nahur-Airoli Road. Police said the trio posed as buyers claiming to have purchased scrap material through an auction. Instead of collecting authorized scrap, they used a gas cutter and crane to dismantle and remove a fully functional 900-kg RMU.
The accused were unaware the unit was live and carrying high-intensity current. Fortunately, the system’s built-in safety mechanism tripped automatically, cutting off the power supply and preventing potential fatal electrocution. “Had the system not tripped, the accused could have lost their lives due to the high voltage,” said PSI Sagar Nale.
The sudden power disruption alerted MSEB officials. Assistant engineer Prasad Sanjay Mistry, 32, rushed to inspect the outage, but by then, the RMU had already been removed. One accused was detained at the site along with the hydraulic crane operator, whose statement helped expose the plan. The other two had transported the stolen RMU to Saki Naka, intending to sell it.
Based on the detained accused’s statements, police recovered the RMU and seized the truck used for transport, valued at Rs 8 lakh, bringing the total recovery to Rs 13.61 lakh. All three accused have been remanded to judicial custody.
The police emphasized that thefts involving live power infrastructure not only cause significant financial losses but also pose a grave risk to human lives.
