Police investigations have revealed that Khan committed the theft to fuel his growing addiction to online gambling. He allegedly established contact with an online dealer from Haryana via social media, to whom he sold the stolen jerseys. The proceeds from the illicit sale were transferred directly to Khan’s bank account
The incident itself took place on June 13 but remained undetected for over a month (Photo: PTI)
IPL 2025 jerseys worth approximately Rs 6.5 lakh were reportedly stolen from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) office located at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium. The prime accused in the case is a 40-year-old security guard, Farooque Aslam Khan, who has since been arrested in connection with the theft.
According to a report in Times of India, Khan made away with 261 jerseys, each valued at nearly Rs 2,500. These jerseys were reportedly of various Indian Premier League teams, though it remains unclear whether they were designated for official players or the public.
Police investigations have revealed that Khan committed the theft to fuel his growing addiction to online gambling. He allegedly established contact with an online dealer from Haryana via social media, to whom he sold the stolen jerseys. The proceeds from the illicit sale were transferred directly to Khan’s bank account, which he later claimed were entirely lost to gambling.
The incident itself took place on June 13 but remained undetected for over a month. It only came to light after a routine inventory audit flagged discrepancies in the storeroom's stock. BCCI officials promptly reviewed CCTV footage, which showed Khan exiting the premises with a box containing the jerseys. Following this discovery, the BCCI filed an official complaint at the Marine Drive Police Station on July 17.
"The guard claims he haggled a bit with the online dealer, but he hasn't yet specified how much he got for the deal," a police source told TOI. "The online dealer says he was not aware that the jerseys had been stolen. The guard had told the man in Haryana that the jerseys were part of a stock clearance sale due to renovation work that was going on at the office."
So far, law enforcement authorities have managed to recover 50 of the 261 stolen jerseys. The rest remain untraced as police continue to investigate the online dealer's identity and track down potential buyers who may have unknowingly purchased the stolen merchandise.
"He [the guard] claims he lost it all to online gambling," said the source, saying that they are checking his bank account details to verify his claim.
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