The city police have finally recovered 220 gm gold ornaments valued around Rs.5.5 lakh with the arrest of the prime accused in the daylight robbery at Nanditha Jewellers at Muralinagar.
Giving details to the media here on Wednesday, Police Commissioner B. Shivadhar Reddy said that the prime accused in the case Anees Saghir Khan (32) was arrested with the help of the Mumbai police. Though three of the eight accused involved in the robbery were arrested on October 19, 2012, the police could not recover the stolen property.
The inter-state dacoit gang members had stolen around 1,600 gm gold and some silver ornaments from the jewellery shop located under Kancharapalem police station limits in the city by threatening the shop owner R. Venkata Rao and his staff with fire arms and sharp-edged weapons on September 25, 2012.
Saghir Khan of Mumbai is a notorious criminal and was involved in several cases including dacoity, kidnap and rape under various police stations in Mumbai and he was a dossier criminal and was jailed for seven years in the Central Prison at Nasik.
He developed friendship with Manish Chowhan, James Almida and Mangesh Gaikward in Nasik Jail and after release from prison in 2011, Khan with the help of his friends in the prison, who were released in the same year planned to commit a dacoity.
The Police Commissioner said during investigation it was found that eight persons - Manish Chowhan Bhind, James Almida, Mangesh Gaikward, Shagir Khan, Shahid, Akra, Santhosh Kumar Singh and Jagata Rama Krishna — had participated in the daylight robbery at the jewellery store.
After gathering concrete evidence in the case, the city police visited Bhind in Madhya Pradesh and arrested Manish Chowhan on October 19, 2012 and during the interrogation; Manish confessed to the crime and revealed the involvement of two Indian Naval employees – leading seaman Santosh Kumar Singh and Chief Petty Officer Jagatha Ramakrishna.
These two naval employees harboured the dacoit gang, guided and moved with them in the city.
Mr. Shivadhar Reddy said Inspector (Crime) of Kancharapalem Police Station B. Mohan Rao and his team visited Mumbai and arrested Khan two days ago and recovered 220 gm gold from the accused and that search was on for the other accused in the case and to recover the remaining stolen property.
