One more person was arrested in connection with the investigation into the bank robbery at the North Malabar Gramin Bank branch at Periya in Kanhangad.
T.K. Haneefa (38) of Muzhappilangad was arrested by a police team headed by the Kanhangad Deputy Superintendent of Police Habeeb Rahman at Thalassery on Wednesday. The police also recovered 3.5 kg of gold ornaments from him.
The police on August 22 had arrested 26-year old Krishnamoorthy hailing from Pilamedu at Villepuram in Tamil Nadu. He was the kingpin of the burglary in which seven people were involved. According to the police, Haneefa had purchased the ornaments stolen from the bank. He had gifted 73 sovereigns of gold ornaments to his relative and pledged 576 grams of gold ornaments at the Dharmadom Co-operative Bank, the police said. He had also sold some of the stolen ornaments to three jewellers at Thalassery. A scrap merchant in the past, he used to purchase scrap materials from Krishnamoorthy. The police said Haneefa would be produced before the Hosdurg court on Thursday.
Gold ornaments weighing 33 kg and cash totalling Rs. 6.5 lakh had been stolen from the bank branch at Periya on June 18. The total loss was estimated at Rs. 4.57 crore.
