Mumbai: Gang that sold cooking gas for commercial purposes busted

The recovered cylinders

The Charkop and Malwani police in Mumbai have jointly busted a gang that used to convert LPG cylinders meant for household use under government subsidies, into commercial cylinders, by registering as fake consumers with gas agencies. Three people have been arrested and several gas agencies in the city are under the scanner following this, the police said.

The police recently arrested the mastermind, Trimuthi Tirumal, 35 and his associates Mangilal Bisnoi, 32 and Shravan Bisnoi, 35, from a godown at Dharoli in Malwani and recovered 194 LPG cylinders, four electric refilling machines and weighing machines from the spot all worth R10 lakh. The raid was held under the supervision of DCP Vishal Thakur, API Sudhir Chavan, API Nilesh Salunkhe and other personnel from both police stations.

During their interrogation, the accused told the police that they have been running the scam for several years in connivance with the gas agencies.

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According to Tirumal, they filled the LPG from 14 kg cooking gas cylinders which are available at R1,051 each, into commercial cylinders of 19 kg and 5 kg and sold them to industrial units for R1,844 and R538 respectively.

The accused have been booked under Sections 436 (mischief by fire or explosive substance), 420 (cheating), 336 (whoever does any act so rashly and negligently as to endanger human life), 285, (negligent conduct with respect to fire) of the IPC. The trio was produced before the Borivli metropolitan magistrate court and remanded in police custody.

"The accused have revealed the names of some of the gas agencies with whom they connived. We are collecting evidence against them. Once we get it, the operators will be placed under arrest," said DCP Thakur.