Andhra Pradesh: 900 KIA car engines worth Rs 50 cr missing from Pendukonda plant; FIR filed

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Tirupati: Nearly 900 car engines, valued at over Rs 50 crore, have reportedly gone missing from Kia’s manufacturing facility located near Penukonda in the Sri Sathya Sai district over the past five years. According to police, an FIR was registered 10 days ago following a formal complaint by Kia’s management.

This significant discovery has prompted a police investigation, as authorities suspect a serious security lapse, potentially involving internal involvement.
Penukonda police stated that Kia Motors filed a complaint on March 19 after the missing engines were discovered during a routine internal audit.

Superintendent of Police V. Ratna, accompanied by senior officers, promptly visited the Penukonda plant, though the visit was initially portrayed as a standard inspection.

Engines likely stolen while transportation from Chennai to facility

Initial findings suggest that the engines may have been stolen while being transported from Chennai to the Penukonda facility.

One line of suspicion suggests that for every indent raised for four engines, records indicated that five were delivered. This discrepancy came to light during the verification of delivery records. As part of the investigation, police are likely to question multiple employees and individuals linked to surrounding shell companies, including former staff who retired during the timeframe under scrutiny.

Initially, the police suspected that the car engines transported from Tamil Nadu to Kia Motors' Penukonda plant might have been stolen during transit. However, after a preliminary investigation, they concluded that the theft occurred within the plant itself, with records allegedly being manipulated.

Meanwhile, Kia Motors declined to comment on the matter, citing the ongoing police investigation. However, the company assured that the plant's production operations remained unaffected, despite reports of around 900 car engines being stolen from the facility.