The Yeshwanthpur police on Monday arrested the salesman of a jewellery shop for allegedly stealing gold valuables over the past one year and pawning them with the help of his friend in order to lead a lavish life.
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The accused, Chethan Nayak, 27, worked as salesman in Best Jewellers on Triveni Road for four years. The incident came to light when the owner of the shop noticed that a necklace kept in the showcase, which had to be delivered to the customer, mysteriously missing.
The owner then checked the CCTV footage to find Chethan pocketing the necklace. A review of more footage revealed Chethan stealing jewels earlier as well, the police said.
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Based on a complaint, the police picked up Chethan and a detailed questioning led to his partner Vijay.
According to the police, Chethan would hand over the stolen jewels to Vijay, 25, who would pawn them and use the money for their lavish lifestyle. The accused are spendthrifts and addicted to hookah and alcohol. They would take their wives to expensive bars and restaurants and spend the money, a police officer said, adding that the accused also bought a car and a scooter, which have been recovered.
Investigations revealed that Chethan has been taking valuables from the shop since last year, and had reportedly stolen around 770 grams of articles. Based on his confession, the police recovered 372 grams of gold valuables, and cash of ₹99,000, all together worth ₹26.2 lakh.
The police couldn’t recover the remaining valuables as Vijay claimed he could not remember where he had pawned the stolen jewels.