Mumbai, August 4, 2026: The Sir J.J. Marg Police have busted an interstate gang involved in stealing underground MTNL copper cables, solving two major cases and arresting seven accused. The police have also seized vehicles, machinery, stolen copper cable and tools collectively worth Rs 55.13 lakh.
The arrested accused have been identified as Mohammad Sarwar Mohammad Anwar Ansari (35), Asif Dildar Sayyed (27), Azam Fakhruddin Qureshi (34), Salman Akram Ali Ansari (23), Sufiyan Fakhruddin Qureshi (25), Junaid Javed Ahmad (26) and Mohammad Babloo Mohammad Razi Shaikh (38).
The action comes amid a rise in thefts of underground cables belonging to MTNL and other telecom service providers, which have disrupted telephone and internet services, affecting residents, businesses and government offices.
Such thefts have caused substantial financial losses to the government and disrupted essential communication services. Following directions from the Mumbai Police Commissioner to crack down on organised cable thefts, the Sir J.J. Marg Police launched a focused operation against the gang.
First Operation Leads To Three Arrests
On August 2, acting on specific intelligence, a police team raided the footpath near Berkeley Palace, Railway Colony, where some men were allegedly digging up the ground to steal underground MTNL cables. Two accused were caught red-handed with digging equipment, including pickaxes, shovels and cable cutters.
During the operation, two accomplices managed to flee in a tempo carrying the stolen cable. An FIR was registered under Sections 303(2), 62 and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023. Subsequently, police tracked down and arrested one more accomplice. All three accused have been remanded to police custody till August 6.
Second Raid Nets Four More
In another operation conducted in the early hours of August 4, police received information that a group was cutting MTNL underground cables near Berkeley Palace, Railway Colony.
During the raid, four accused were found using a cutter to sever the cables. The gang had allegedly brought a JCB excavator to dig up the road and was loading the stolen copper cables into an Eicher tempo.
Police arrested all four accused on the spot and seized the JCB, Eicher tempo, Honda Civic car, copper cable and other equipment. Another FIR was registered under Sections 303(2) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023.
Police seized the following property worth Rs 55.13 lakh:
● Tata LPT tempo (MH-48-DQ-0136) – Rs 18 lakh
● Mahindra JCB (MH-01-EB-2041) – Rs 30 lakh
● Honda Civic car (MH-43-AJ-1870) – Rs 3 lakh
● 70 metres of stolen copper cable – Rs 4.10 lakh
● Cable cutter, pickaxes and shovels – Rs 3,000
Interstate Network Under Probe
Preliminary investigation revealed that the accused allegedly operated in a highly organised manner. They are suspected to have used heavy machinery such as JCB excavators and commercial vehicles to dig up underground telecom cables while creating the impression that authorised roadwork was underway.
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Police suspect the gang is part of an interstate network that transported and sold the stolen copper cables outside Maharashtra with the help of associates. Further investigation is underway to identify other members of the gang and trace the disposal network for the stolen property.
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