Six held for diesel pilferage during transport to fuel pumps

Pune: Six people were arrested on Tuesday on the charge of pilferage from fuel tankers transporting diesel from distribution terminals of two oil companies in Loni Kalbhor to fuel pumps in Pune city.
The Loni Kalbhor police made the arrests near Theur Phata at Kunjirwadi on Pune-Solapur highway. The crime took place on an open plot of land in the area.
Senior police inspector Rajendra Karankot said that on Wednesday two private tankers filled with diesel belonging to two public sector oil companies, an empty tanker, 1,620 litre of diesel, two trucks, a car, an electric motor, a pipe and a plastic barrel — collectively worth over Rs48 lakh — were seized.The suspects would steal fuel to sell it in black in the rural areas of Pune.
Deputy commissioner of police (zone V) R Raja told TOI that around four months ago, petrol pump dealers had approached senior police officers and shared inputs about alleged ongoing pilferage of fuel at certain places in the district. "Since then, our police teams were working on clues. The breakthrough in investigations came after the suspects were caught stealing diesel from tankers to sell it in black at local markets for a quick buck," he said.
Raja said the preliminary probe pointed to the involvement of private tanker owners, drivers, cleaners and refilling staffers for stealing diesel from vehicles after it was refilled at the oil companies in Loni Kalbhor. "We will probe whether staffers of the two oil companies are also involved in the crime," the officer added.
National spokesperson of the All India Petrol Dealers Association Ali Daruwala said, "Pune city police should invoke stringent provisions of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act against the suspects, who are also adulterators. This is because while stealing diesel, the thieves top it with spurious chemical substances which can be harmful to the environment. Police should conduct in-depth investigations and not spare anybody found involved in the fuel pilferage."
Karankot said, "We verified information about the planned pilferage, laid a trap and took six out of eight suspects, who were in the process of stealing the fuel, into custody. The arrested men told the police during questioning that they would break seals of tankers and reseal it after siphoning off a few litres of fuel at a time."
The officer said fuel pumps placed orders based on requirements and made online payment to the company. In some cases, pump owners deployed their own tankers to transport fuel, while the company awarded contracts to private parties in other cases.
Karankot said that vehicles registered with oil companies refill fuel, company officials measure the quantity after it is filled and affix a seal to prevent pilferage. "The suspects involved in the racket would stop vehicles at secluded places on the highway and steal fuel by breaking the seal. Seals would be fixed again and fuel delivered to pumps," he added.
Meanwhile, the arrested men were identified as Shubam Bhagat (23), Tushant Shumbe (31), Ravi Kevat (25), Vishal Gosavi (30), Kiran Ambekar (31) and Rohit Kumar (21) — drivers, cleaners and men responsible for refilling, respectively. Two people managed to escape and police were looking for them. An FIR related to theft was registered under the Indian Penal Code, Explosive Substances Act and Essential Commodities Act, he added.