Five arrested over £350,000 router theft

Five men have been arrested over the theft of thousands of D-Link routers, police have revealed.

A lorry containing more than 7,000 wireless router kits, worth in excess of £350,000, was stolen from a Kent trading estate last month, where it was parked en route to D-Link's European logistics centre.

The lorry was later found abandoned in North London with the routers missing.

Kent Police said on Friday they had arrested five men from North and East London in relation to the theft.

The routers are now being sold on internet auction sites at a "heavily reduced" price.

At the time of writing, the model of the type that was stolen was available from one seller on an internet auction site for just £11. Each router normally sells for around £50.

D-Link confirmed it would still offer standard product support to customers who buy the stolen routers.

At least two users have already come forward to report stolen equipment, the company said.

The stolen products are 802.11g-enabled wireless starter kits, each comprising a router and wireless USB adapter.

The model number is DWL-922/E and the UPC number - displayed next to the barcode - is 790069285479. All the stolen models have two-pin plugs as they were destined for European markets.

Kent Police detective constable Freddie Elspass-Collins said: "D-Link do supply the UK market with a very similar router but this of course has a three-pin plug.

"Buyers on the internet interested in purchasing a D-Link router should ask the seller of the item to clarify whether the unit has a two- or three-pin plug."

Kent Police warned users to check whether their products had any unexpected marks, which could indicate they were stolen.

Readers with information on the theft should contact DC Elspass-Collins on 01622 604258.

Richard Thurston writes for ZDNet UK