Notorious inter-State thief arrested

Visakhapatnam: In a breakthrough, the city police arrested one of the most wanted burglarson Saturday on charges of thefts in various temples and houses across the state. The police also recovered 17.5 kg silver ornaments and 30 grams gold ornaments from the accused.

The accused was identified as Santosh Kumar Das, alias Prakash Kumar Sahuk (40), a native of Bhilai and resident of Nayagara district in Odisha.

Explaining the details at a press conferenceon Saturday, deputy commissioner of police (crimes) T Ravi Kumar Murthy said that Sahuk, who was neglected by his father, resorted to thefts. He started his criminal activities in 1998, by committing theft in Kanaka Durga temple in Vijayawada. Later, he was arrested by the Vijayawada police and jailed for two years.

After releasing from the jail, he started thefts in temples at various places. In 2007, Sahuk has committed a theft at Jain temple at Bangaluru, where he made good with Rs 7.8 crore worth ornaments and he also committed theft at Surya Narayana Swamy temple in Arasavalli of Srikakulam district.After the two thefts, police arrested him and sent him to jail for one year.

In 2010, Sahuk married a woman and after a gap of two years from 2012 he went back to his old profession. In September 2016, Sahuk has committed four offences in Visakhapatnam, where he fled away with huge amount of silver from a showroom in Visakhapatnam, Jaggannadh Swamy temple in Steel plant, Ravi Kumar Murthy said.

The DCP said that during in the interrogation the accused revealed that he has targeted only temples and that too silver properties just because the security at temples, when compared to other areas is low. Moreover, disposing silver is easy in the market.

Detailing the modus operandi, the DCP said that the accused reaches location, stays in a lodge, conducts recce of the temple, before committing theft. He uses two sharp-edged weapons and breaks into temple by breaking locks. To escape from CCTV surveillance, he wears mask and cap and then makes good with the property.

Soon after the theft the accused gives the silver articles for polishing and leaves the place. After some days, he comes back to collect the articles and then sells them to other parties.In several theft cases that he took part in the city, theft was recorded in CCTV and the accused has also left his fingerprints.

On close watch, police came to understand that Sahuk has come to Visakhapatnam to meet a party at One town, where he was nabbed. The accused has confessed that he has also committed 11 thefts in few parts of Odisha, Kurnool, Malakpet of Hyderabad, Cuttack, Vizianagaram, Rajamahendravaram.

During the past two decades, Sahuk committed around 50 thefts. Meanwhile, the police sources said that the accused has a house at Itamamati of Odisha.