Four unidentified men looted valuables estimated at Rs.7 lakh from the house of an elderly couple at Panchayathunada, near Menamkulam, in the Kazhakuttam police station limits early Sunday.
The police said the men had tied up Shanta, 74, and gagged her with a cloth before fleeing the spot with gold weighing around 30 sovereigns, including ornaments worn by her, and other valuables such as a camera, a mobile phone, and Rs.11,000 in cash. Shanta’s husband Sahadevan was not harmed since he was bedridden.
Shanta said the men gained entry into the house by breaking open a door on the first floor. They tied her to a sofa where she was asleep before gagging her and stealing the valuables kept in an almirah.
The police said most of the gold stolen was on Shanta’s person.
“She was wearing nearly 20 sovereigns of gold, which included a waist belt weighing nine sovereigns, four bangles weighing a total of 5.75 sovereigns, a necklace of two sovereigns, and three rings and a pair of earrings weighing a total of 3.75 sovereigns. The almirah had two chains weighing a total of 6.5 sovereigns, a ring of one sovereign, and three pairs of earrings,” the police said.
Shanta managed to untie herself around 2.30 a.m. after which she alerted neighbours, who called in the police.
The police said the couple had returned from the United Kingdom, where their children were settled, last year. The burglars, Shanta’s complaint said, were aged around 30 years.
