A major car engine theft case has come to light in Andhra Pradesh’s Anantapur district, where nine people were arrested for stealing 940 Kia engines from a factory in Erramanchi, Penugonda Mandal.The engines were quietly taken out of the manufacturing unit and moved without getting noticed. After looking into the matter, the police caught the accused and took them to court.

They have been sent to 14 days of judicial custody, and police have registered cases against them under several sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita. Vinayakan Muthi, the primary suspect in the car engine theft case, is from Tamil Nadu, while his accomplice, Salim, is from Punganur in Chittoor district, Andhra Pradesh. 

The remaining six suspects, all hailing from Tamil Nadu, are believed to have played an active role in assisting the duo with stealing the car engines from the manufacturing unit.The theft was uncovered on March 19 when Kia's management in Erramanchi, Penugonda Mandal, raised an alarm and filed a complaint with the local police.

Following the complaint, a thorough investigation was launched, which eventually led to the arrest of the suspects. The police also successfully recovered the stolen car engines, which are valued at several lakhs of rupees. After the arrests, the family members of the accused, who are from Tamil Nadu, reportedly visited the Penugonda police station to gather more information about the incident and the ongoing legal process.

This is not the first case that has come into light in this region. In February, six gang members from Uttar Pradesh were arrested by Vijayawada police for stealing iPhones and laptops worth Rs 2.51 crore from a warehouse in Enikepadu, Vijayawada. According to the police, the gang, led by a man named Ranjit, had been operating across Andhra Pradesh for a considerable period, carrying out similar thefts before being caught.

 

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