Police in Greater Noida have cracked down on a theft ring targeting the under-construction Noida International Airport, arresting four individuals, including a site manager employed by the infrastructure giant Tata Projects. The accused were caught red-handed while allegedly transporting stolen aluminium cables worth approximately Rs 15 lakh.
Midnight Interception Near University Intersection
The arrests were made during the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday by a team from the Ecotech-1 police station. Officers were conducting routine checks at the Gautam Buddha University intersection when they grew suspicious of a canter truck. Upon inspection, they discovered seven bundles of high-value aluminium cables inside the vehicle.
The four men in the truck were immediately taken into custody. During preliminary questioning, they confessed to stealing the cables from the airport construction site with the intention of selling them as scrap metal. The police also recovered the canter, which was fitted with a fake number plate, and a car from the accused.
Inside Job: Site Engineer and Scrap Dealer Nexus
Investigations revealed a troubling insider connection to the theft. One of the arrested individuals has been identified as Shivam Sharma (22), who worked as a site engineer with Tata Projects at the Noida International Airport terminal building project. His alleged involvement points to a breach of security and trust within the project premises.
The other three arrested men are Irshad Ahmed (23), the truck driver, his helper Mohammad Siraj (21)—both residents of Siddharthnagar—and Izhar (26), a scrap dealer from Delhi. The police stated that the accused indicated the potential involvement of a few more employees at the airport site, suggesting the theft may be part of a larger racket.
Legal Action and Ongoing Probe
Additional DCP (Greater Noida) Sudheer Kumar confirmed that the four accused have been booked under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). The charges include BNS 317(5) for disposal of stolen property, 318(4) for cheating, and 3(5) for common intention.
The police have launched a further investigation to identify and apprehend their associates. The focus is on uncovering the full network involved in the theft and ensuring the security of critical infrastructure projects like the Noida International Airport is not compromised. This incident raises serious concerns about material security at one of India's most high-profile infrastructure developments.
