Rupnagar police bust Interstate Oil Tanker Lock Tampering & Fuel Theft racket, two held
Bahadurjeet Singh/royalpatiala.in News/ Rupnagar, January 14,2026 Rupnagar Police claimed to have busted an interstate racket involved in tampering/illegal opening of digital locks of oil tankers, preparation of duplicate electronic keys, and theft/diversion of petroleum products for illegal sale at various locations and arrested two accused.
In this connection, a case has been registered under Sections 303(2), 317(2), 318(4), 336(2), 336(3), 340(2), 341(2), 339, 61(2), 3(5) BNS at Rupnagar Sadar police station.
Addressing a press conference DSP (D) Rupnagar Jatinder Singh Chauhan said that this successful operation was carried out under the overall guidance of Nanak Singh,, DIG Rupnagar Range and Maninder Singh,SSP Rupnagar, The operation was executed jointly by the Special Branch team under the Incharge Inspector Gurwinder Singh Dhillon, in coordination with the Police Station Sadar Rupnagar team headed by Inspector Sunny Khanna.
Arrested accused have been identified as Vikram alias Vicky (Driver), resident of Village Kalwan, District Rupnagar and Mohammad Danish, resident of Meerut, Uttar Pradesh.
DSP said during police action, both accused were apprehended in connection with the preparation/use of an electronic key/device used for opening oil tanker locks with the intention of stealing petrol/diesel and selling the same illegally. The accused disclosed that duplicate keys/electronic keys were used to open tanker locks without raising suspicion and facilitate theft of petroleum products which were later sold at roadside dhabas.
He said accused Mohammad Danish, disclosed that he has been involved in key making, lock opening and microprocessor chip programming, and used to prepare duplicate keys/electronic lock devices by procuring components and programming microprocessor chips. He further disclosed that he had prepared several duplicate keys and had visited Punjab and Himachal Pradesh multiple times, mainly covering Rupnagar, Sangrur and Nalagarh areas, indicating an interstate network operating across Punjab and other states.
DSP said the accused Vikram Singh disclosed that he used to procure electronic keys from Mohammad Danish and used such keys for opening the tanker lock and stealing fuel, which was later sold at various dhabas. The accused also disclosed payment made through online transactions for preparation of the electronic key/device.
He said during recovery/search, 40–50 base keys, One soldering machine,One 12-volt battery with wire and clipper,iRF unlock keys – 12,Microprocessor chips – 12,One lock of BPCL oil tanker fitted with a microprocessor chip and one RF key,Other material used for manufacturing,One mobile phone (Xiaomi 12 Pro),One personal car Maruti Fronx bearing No. UP 15 EP 3464 were recovered.One BPCL oil tanker with one lock found opened.
He said that further investigation is underway to identify the entire interstate chain, including involvement of other tanker drivers, receivers/buyers of stolen petroleum products, and associates involved in preparation and distribution of duplicate keys and electronic lock bypass devices. More recoveries and arrests are likely in the coming days.
