Thieves make off with brand new SUV worth ₹55 lakh in Noida

Noida: A man lost his brand-new SUV, a Toyota Fortuner Legender,worth ₹55 lakh after some suspects stole it early Monday from outside a hotel where it was parked in Noida’s Sector 122. The alleged theft that lasted barely 45 seconds was recorded by a CCTV camera installed a few metres away.

Lukman Khan, a resident of Masuri in Ghaziabad runs a construction company, and had purchased the car on May 8. He said some people in a Hyundai Creta did a recce of the area for about an hour early Monday before his car was stolen.

“The backlight of the SUV was found broken at the spot, and it appears that the suspect most likely broke the backlight to access the electronic control module (ECM), which controls the car,” said Khan, who filed a police complaint at Sector 113 police station.

“On Sunday, around 10.45pm, I parked my SUV outside a hotel on Kondli Bazaar Road in Noida’s Sector 122 and went in. Next morning, around 5am, when I came out, my car was missing,” Khan said, adding that after briefly enquiring with people nearby about the car he contacted police.

He said the theft was recorded by a CCTV camera and the footage shows a white SUV (Creta) doing a recce of the area on Monday between 3 and 4am.

“After an hour, the car stopped behind the Fortuner, and a man alighted from the Creta,” said Khan, adding that after spending just 45 seconds near his car, one of the suspects managed to open the keyless door and turn on the ignition.

“I have been parking my car on Kondli Bazaar Road for the last three days. Due to construction work in Noida, I was staying at a hotel in Sector 122, as my home is far from the construction site,” said Khan.

Police have formed two teams to scan the CCTV footage.

“We are trying to find the route the suspects took. The registration number of the suspect’s SUV was not captured by CCTV,” said a police officer.

A senior police officer said the theft was committed by professional thieves, as it needs technical knowledge to access the ECM of top-end cars.

“As the backlight was also found broken at the spot, it was suspected that the suspect most likely broke the light to hack the ECM,” the officer added.

“On a complaint by Khan, a case under Section 379 (for theft) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) was registered at Sector 113 police station on Monday, and efforts are underway to track the SUV,” said station house officer (Sector 113) Krishna Gopal Sharma.