Unidentified men broke into a house in Red Hills on Sunday night and stole over 50 sovereigns of gold jewellery worth nearly Rs. 12 lakh, Rs. 50, 000 in cash and some silver articles.
They escaped by climbing down a rope from the terrace, the police said.
C. Sermanathan, his wife Mohana and five of his family member have been residing in the single-storeyed building on Kattabomman Street in Kamarajar Nagar, Red Hills, for the past thirty years. Sermanathan works as an assistant manager (finance) in a private company.
On Friday, the family left for Srivilliputhur to visit a temple of their family deity and returned on Monday morning. “When we entered the house, we found the cupboards open and the valuables kept inside were missing. Clothes and other items kept inside were strewn all over,” said Sermanathan.
He said they found the front door locked, but the inside doors were open and all the cupboards broken open. “We suspect the culprit removed the bolt and nuts from the door to gain entry,” said Sermanathan.
After ransacking the first floor, the burglars seemed to have gained access to the terrace. “There was a rope on the terrace. The burglars might have used the rope to descend from the building to avoid attracting attention,” said a police source.
Sermanathan said there had been no previous incidents of burglary at his home. “We had a dog earlier. Since it became old we handed it over to the Blue Cross. Its presence might have prevented the burglary. Recently, we purchased a puppy but as we were going out of station, we left it in a relative’s house,” said Sermanathan. As it was just a two-day trip, he had not kept the jewellery in a bank locker, he said.
A complaint was lodged with the Red Hills police. A team visited the spot and conducted an investigation.
