Telangana Cops Bust Tractor Theft Gang, 6 Vehicles Worth Rs 40 Lakh Recovered

Adilabad District Police have busted an inter-state gang allegedly cheating farmers by collecting financed tractors in the name of leasing them and illegally transporting the vehicles to Maharashtra.

Police arrested the prime accused along with four local agents and recovered six tractors worth approximately Rs 40 lakh.

According to SP Akhila Mahajan, the gang targeted farmers struggling to pay their tractor loan instalments.

"The accused allegedly approached tractor owners, assured them they would clear the outstanding loan dues, and convinced them to hand over their tractors on a lease basis. However, instead of paying the dues, the gang allegedly transported the tractors illegally to Maharashtra,'' he said.

The gang was allegedly operated by Yogesh Patil, Sohail Rehan and Asif, all from Maharashtra's Amravati district, along with two other accused, Peetambar and Ambar Rao.

Police said the accused received assistance from local agents in Adilabad district, who allegedly persuaded farmers to hand over their tractors in return for a commission of Rs 10,000 per vehicle.

During the preliminary investigation, police found that the gang had allegedly transported nine tractors from different parts of Adilabad district. These included four tractors from Indravelli mandal, three from Bela mandal, and one each from Utnoor and Tamsi mandals.

Acting on credible information, police formed two special police teams to investigate the case and trace the tractors. One team travelled to Amravati in Maharashtra and recovered five tractors, while the second seized another tractor from the Chikhli area.

A total of six tractors, collectively valued at around Rs 40 lakh, were recovered. The seized vehicles include two John Deere tractors, two Swaraj tractors, one Mahindra tractor and one Powertrac tractor.

Cases have been registered against the accused at the Indravelli, Utnoor, Tamsi and Bela police stations.

Warning farmers against falling prey to such fraudulent schemes, the police advised tractor owners facing financial difficulties not to hand over their vehicles to unknown persons promising to clear outstanding loan dues in the name of leasing them.