A closed private hospital in Sunny Enclave, Kharar, which was shut down following an alleged illegal kidney transplant case, was targeted by thieves again, with three men allegedly caught cutting copper wiring inside the building, nearly a month after a similar theft at the premises.
According to the police, Manjit Kaur, whose mother Sarabjit Kaur owns Sukh Sewa Hospital, visited the building around 4 pm on October 21 and heard movement inside. When she went in to check, she found three men cutting installed copper wires with tools and collecting them in a plastic sack.
The men tried to flee when they saw her. Manjit raised an alarm, drawing residents and passers-by, who caught the trio before they could escape. They handed the men, along with the recovered wires and cutting tools, to the police at the Sunny Enclave police post.
The police identified the accused as Harpreet Singh of Ekta Colony, Balongi, Teerath Singh of Balongi, and Deepak Kumar of Ambedkar Colony, Balongi.
City Kharar police registered an FIR under Sections 305 (theft), 317(2) (stolen property) and 3(5) (common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Assistant sub-inspector Surjit Singh is investigating the case.
The latest incident follows a similar theft reported at the same hospital in September. In that case, local singer Anmolpreet Singh, who regularly checked the closed premises, allegedly caught a man cutting copper piping from the hospital’s air-conditioning units around 1.05 pm.
The suspect, identified as Pargat Singh of Dhaner Kalan village in Malerkotla district, tried to escape by jumping from the terrace and injured himself in the fall, according to the earlier complaint. Anmolpreet and his companions caught him and handed him over to the police along with the recovered copper piping and tools.
Police registered a case against Pargat under Sections 305 and 317(2) of the BNS.
The two incidents have brought renewed attention to the security of the hospital building, which has remained closed for months. Police are investigating the latest case, they have not stated whether the three accused are linked to the September incident.