Two members of the robbery gang who kept the police and merchant community on tenterhooks with a spate of thefts in the business nerve centre in the heart of the city were arrested by the Central Police in the early hours of Friday.
Abhilash, 23, of Malappuram and C.K. Shameer, 28, of Aluva were arrested after being found under suspicious circumstances on Market Road around 2.40 a.m.
“They were found in possession of weapons that could be used for break-ins and tried to flee the scene when interrogated by a police team who had to chase them down. More arrests are likely in the case,” K. Laljy, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Ernakulam, told The Hindu . They were reportedly about to break into a jewellery when they were intercepted by the police.
In the wake of the thefts, Mr. Laljy had formed a team led by Central Police Circle Inspector A. Ananthalal and comprising Central Sub Inspector Joseph Sajan, K. Sunumon, senior civil police officers, and special squad members.
“Two more members of the gang have been identified, and they will be arrested shortly,” said Mr. Sajan. According to the police, Abhilash was a history-sheeter with involvement in a theft at a restaurant at Madhava Pharmacy Junction. Later, he tied up with Shameer to target a shop on Post Office Link Road. They also confessed to a theft at Maruthoor Thali Siva Temple at Pattambi, the police claimed. The accused were produced before the court and remanded.
The merchant community had been a worried lot following a series of thefts by men with their faces covered. It started with break-ins in six shops on Jew Street. It was followed by a spate of thefts in shops on Merchant Road, Market Road, Convent Junction, SA Road, and TD Road at frequent intervals.
According to traders, around 30 shops were targeted, and nearly ₹6 lakh was looted, not to mention the loss in terms of theft of materials. Unnerved by the thefts, merchants had even planned to deploy night patrol teams to strengthen patrolling by the police.
Mohammed Sageer, general secretary of Kerala Merchant Chamber of Commerce, said despite the arrests, merchants would go ahead with the installation of around 65 CCTV cameras at sensitive points.
