Mumbai Police has made a big revelation about the continuous incidents of theft on ONGC’s offshore platform in the Arabian Sea. Police took action in this case and arrested three accused, while the search for others is still going on.
According to the police, in the month of March, a total of four cases of theft of battery banks, solar panels and cables from different platforms of ONGC were registered at the Yellow Gate Police Station. These incidents had raised questions on the security arrangements and the matter was considered serious.
Investigation started by forming two teams
Considering the seriousness of the matter, two special teams were formed on the instructions of Port Zone Deputy Commissioner of Police Vijaykant Sagar. These teams started investigation on the basis of technical and local information and soon clues were found.
Three accused arrested from Raigarh
During the investigation, the police solved two cases and arrested three accused. They have been identified as Chandrakant Dharmaji Patil (53), Santosh Krishna Patil (50) and Vidyadhar Gajanan Mhatre (32). All of them are residents of different areas of Raigarh district.
Goods worth lakhs and boat seized
The police have also recovered the stolen goods from the accused. This includes 49 battery banks, whose price is said to be around Rs 10.70 lakh. Apart from this, a fishing boat named “Kaushalya Ram Shakti” (registration number IND MH 7-MM-3676) used in the crime has also been seized, which is worth around Rs 15 lakh.
Search continues for absconding accused
Police say that more people may join this gang. At present the absconding accused are being searched. Officials have clearly said that strict action will continue against such criminal gangs, so that the security system in the maritime areas remains strong.