ISLAMABAD: Unidentified individuals have stolen electric cables from the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) headquarters, located inside the heavily guarded Red Zone of the federal capital.

The alleged theft incident has highlighted lapses in the security detail of sensitive buildings in an area of Islamabad housing foreign embassies and other sensitive installations.

According to sources, the Secretariate police have registered a case against unidentified suspects under section 380 of PPC. However, the suspects remain at large.

A police officer said that a preliminary investigation suggested that thieves entered the Red Zone via a rain storm drain next to the NAB building.

They managed to reach the power generation unit of the building, cut off the cables and made off untraced.

The officer said although the stolen items were not of high monetary value, the incident raised questions about the efficacy of security strategies put in place to guard the building.

In March 2023, thieves stole communication cables from the police offices inside the Diplomatic Enclave in Islamabad. Exactly a year later, unidentified individuals made off with the communication cables of the National Telecommunication Corporation, situated in the highly fortified zone.

Published in Dawn, January 5th, 2025