The Puttenahalli police have arrested a 20-year-old youth and his associate from Andhra Pradesh for allegedly breaking into five houses in the city over the past three months, and recovered gold and silver jewellery worth ₹56 lakh.
The accused have been identified as Manoj Kumar and Surya Bhaskar. 45. Surya, who hails from Andhra Pradesh, allegedly helped Manoj sell the stolen items.
Break-in complaint
The Puttenahalli police zeroed in on Manoj while investigating a house break-in complaint. After questioning him, a team went to Lakshmipete in Andhra Pradesh and arrested Surya Bhaskar. They recovered 1.16 kg of gold and 300 grams of silver articles from Surya Bhaskar.
According to the police, Manoj is a high-school dropout from Denkanikottai in Tamil Nadu who worked as an office aide in a private company.
“However, he got into bad company and developed an addiction to drugs and other vices. He needed money to sustain his lifestyle and started breaking into houses,” said a police officer.
Arrested 2 years ago
Manoj had been arrested by the Tamil Nadu police two years ago in a theft case and remanded in judicial custody.
After getting bail, he relocated to Bengaluru. “He identified houses that were locked. He kept watch on the houses to ensure that the owners were away before breaking in,” the police officer added.
The duo have been taken into custody for further investigation.
