52 held for stealing, selling mobile tower equipment to Hong Kong

The Delhi Police busted a gang involved in a series of inter-state thefts of crucial telecommunications equipment, including Remote Radio Units (RRUs), Base Band Units (BBUs), batteries and other accessories from mobile towers across the country, officials said on Wednesday.

RRU is a transceiver which is installed on wireless base stations/mobile towers. It makes it possible to send and receive text messages.

The operation led to the arrest of 52 persons and the recovery of items valued at over Rs 10 crore. Furthermore, an estimated 5,000 RRUs, worth over Rs 100 crore, were reportedly exported abroad, they said.

The gang members operated with a high degree of sophistication, stealing RRUs and BBUs — key components necessary for mobile network towers — from various states, including Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha and Punjab.

“These components are vital for network functionality; any theft leads to massive service disruptions and financial losses,” an official stated. The stolen equipment was subsequently smuggled overseas.

The police intercepted and dismantled various branches of the operation, recovering 414 RRUs, 110 BBUs and 161 Jio batteries, among other stolen items.

“On October 22, a key suspect, Zuber Malik, was found in possession of 63 RRUs and testing equipment used for illegally reselling the stolen items. Four other suspects were subsequently arrested in connection with this case, revealing a sophisticated supply chain extending from India to international markets,” Additional Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Sanjay Bhatia said.

In another raid, the police seized advanced tools used to dismantle RRUs from mobile towers. The items included ropes, safety belts, hooks, pulleys and high-tech hardware.

Among the 52 individuals arrested, the key figures included Sagar Bhatnagar and Rajesh Shukla, who were responsible for exporting over 3,000 RRUs overseas under the guise of electronic switches. Through data analysis, the police uncovered records of 2,750 RRUs shipped to Hong Kong alone, the police said.

“Another suspect, Gurdeep Singh, was found using courier services under the name HT Sky Cargo to facilitate the movement of stolen goods. Officials said his role was essential in receiving and dispatching RRUs to buyers abroad,” the official added.

While the cyber cell arrested two suspects involved in theft and possession of firearms on June 25, 2024, the Eastern Range-I (Crime Branch) also arrested multiple suspects who admitted to dismantling equipment and selling it to scrap dealer.

The police said the arrests were made between January 18, 2023, and October 26 this year. The operation resolved a total of 256 theft cases reported across various states, including Rajasthan, Haryana, Telangana and West Bengal.

Pan-India operation

• The police intercepted and dismantled various branches of the operation, recovering 414 RRUs, 110 BBUs and 161 Jio batteries, among other stolen items.
• The gang has exported over 5,000 Remote Radio Units worth Rs 100 crore abroad so far.
• With the arrest of 52 accused, 256 theft cases of Delhi, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Telangana, Odisha, West Bengal, Bihar and Tamil Nadu have been solved.