Posted on 04/16/2022 4:40:03 PM PDT by algore
A gang of thieves stole a 60-foot long, 550-ton bridge in northeastern India for its lucrative scrap value, according to the Indian news agency Asian News International (ANI).
Police have arrested eight men, including two government employees, a police official said, per ANI.
"We have arrested eight persons, including an SDO (subdivisional officer) of the water resources department, in connection with the theft of the bridge," said Rohtas's police superintendent Ashish Bharti, per ANI.
"The thieves stole the bridge in connivance with the SDO. We have recovered one JCB, stolen iron channels weighing about 247 kg, and other material," Bharti continued.
—Nistula Hebbar (@nistula) April 9, 2022
The iron bridge across the Ara-Sone canal in Bihar, which was in a state of disrepair after being out of use since the early 2000s, was dismantled over three days from April 3, BBC News reported.
The gang wore government uniforms to avoid suspicion while working in broad daylight from 7 am daily, using cutting torches and excavators to tear it apart, BBC News said.
People in the village of Amiyavar were oblivious to the theft, the media outlet reported. "No one suspected it was a heist," local journalist Jitendra Singh told the BBC.
In fact, the media outlet reported that some villagers were happy that the disused bridge was finally being removed.
A phone call to the irrigation department on April 5 by Pawan Kumar, a man from a nearby villager, was what alerted the police to the crime. Kumar reached out to local officials to ask why procedures were not being followed concerning the removal of the bridge, BBC News reported.
In the US, $133 per ton for iron ore.
So 500 tons would be $66,500. So depending on what prices are for scrap iron in India, that might be the value of the steal.
But if the city gets the profits from the thieves and the unused dilapidated bridge is removed as well. That could be a win win for the city.
As far as crimes go, unless the city had plans for the old bridge, they didn’t cause much harm.
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