Mangalore: Police solve temple theft cases - Arrest 7, seize items worth Rs 17 lac
Pics: Dayanand Kukkaje
Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore (NM)
Mangalore, Jul 19: The accused arrested in Bantwal recently in connection with the thefts at various temples and Basadis in the district were on Friday July 19 produced before the media.
Two more persons were also arrested in the case, and they too were brought along with the rest.
The police had earlier arrested Thimmayya (55) of Chikmagalur, Somanath alias Somesha alias Kulla (45), Jayaraj Swami (45), Ganga alias Gangaraj (48), all from Hassan, and Nethra (38) of Shimoga. Babu (55) of Beltangady who stays in Uppinangady, and Rajendra (65) of Shimoga were arrested later.
Among them, while five were arrested on June 12-13, Babu was caught on July 13 and Rajendra on Thursday July 18. The accused men were produced in court and remanded in police custody, while Nethra was sent to judicial custody.
Addressing a press meet here, SP Abhishek Goyal said that the accused had been arrested at Manihalla in Bantwal. Gold, silver and ancient idols stolen from temples and Basadis in Beltangady, Punjalkatte, Bantwal and Kundapur were recovered from them. However, some of silver had been melted by the accused.
The recovered items include 1.25 kg of silver from Shree Rama Mandira, Brihmarakutlu, Bantwal, 4.5 kg silver (melted) from Shree Chandikaparameshwari Temple, Bantwal, and items stolen from Shree Anantheshwar Temple, Ballamanja, Punjalkatte. The ancient Teerthankara Jain idol stolen from Bangadi Basadi in Beltangady was also recovered.
Altogether, the police seized items worth Rs 17 lac, including 18 grams of gold, 20 kg silver, two cars (Maruti Omni and Tata Indica), and idols. The idols will be sent to the Archaeological Survey of India to determine their exact value, he said.
The SP said that several cases of thefts had been reported in Bantwal and around since January this year, and the police formed a team under the guidance of SI Sadananda Varnekar and from May onwards kept a night vigil as the thefts were taking place in the dark. After a month, on June 12-13, the police caught five of the accused in a car.
On June 12 night, a Tata Indica car was spotted at Nekkaladi in Uppinangady, but when the police tried to stop it, it sped away. Growing suspicious, the police chased it, and Bantwal rural police inspector Mahesh Prasad intercepted it when it was going towards Punjalkatte.
On inspection, the police found axo blade, irons rods, screw driver and sharp wearpons in the car. Chilli powder was found in the car's dash board. The thieves had planned to attack and kill anyone who tried to come in their way, the SP said.
The SP further said that the car had the registeration number KA 19 B 9116, which was fake. The actual number of the car is KA 13 B 1691. The thieves had a Maruti Omni but used to hire the Indica, and change the number plate. The car was always driven by accused Jayaraj.
Explaining the modus operandi of the thieves, SP Goyal said that Jayaraj used to park the vehicle about 5 to 15 km away from the place they had planned to loot. Somanath, Thimmayya and Gangaraj would enter the place and steal, while Babu would keep a watch. They would have two mobile phones for communication - one would be with Jayaraj and the other with the threesome who go in to loot. Once done with the job, they would call Jayaraj and he would pick them up and flee with the booty.
During the day, Babu would inform the gang about the possible temples to loot, and by night, after thorough planning, they would carry out the theft. Nethra was sometimes used by the thieves to avoid drawing attention or raising suspicion.
The SP said that based on their statements, the police went to Hassan and seized the Omni and two idols. They then went to Shimoga and learnt that Jayaraj had given the stolen silver to a person and asked him to melt it for him, stating that it would be used for renovation of a temple. Jayaraj would take the melted silver and then distribute it among his accomplices. The police seized melted silver from houses in Shimoga, Hassan and Kadoor.
The SP said that all of them except Jayaraj have cases lodged against them in various police stations. Rajendra, who was guiding the gang, alone has about 20 cases against him. Jayaraj is a marriage broker by profession.
The SP further informed that accused Thimmayya's wife was a former president of Kadoor gram panchayat, and Thimmayya himself was active politically and used his connections to avoid getting arrested on previous occasions.
Babu had been earlier booked for stealing offering box from Uppinangady St Thomas Catholic Church.
The SP through the media appealed to the temple authorities to install CCTVs, anti-burglary alarms and deploy security guards in temple premises, not only to prevent thefts but also to help the investigation through evidence if a theft took place.