Daijiworld Media Network – Koppal
Koppal, Mar 13: A bag containing gold and diamond jewellery worth more than Rs 90 lakh was stolen from a sleeper coach bus travelling from Mantralaya to Mangaluru. The theft occurred when the bus was halted for dinner on the outskirts of Koppal.
The stolen bag belonged to passengers Mohammed and Irshad from Mangaluru. When the bus stopped for dinner, miscreants allegedly stole the bag containing the gold and diamond jewellery and fled from the spot. The entire incident was captured on CCTV cameras, showing a passenger who was sleeping in the bus fleeing with the bag. Police have now launched an operation to trace the accused.
The robbery took place in front of Tawa Punjab Hotel located on the outskirts of Koppal. The sleeper coach bus travelling from Mantralaya to Mangaluru had halted near Tawa Punjab Hotel along National Highway 63 for passengers to have dinner.
During that time, Mohammed and Irshad, who were sleeping inside the bus, had kept the bag containing gold jewellery near them. A thief allegedly stole the bag and escaped. It is learnt that the gold jewellery belonged to UNICEF Gold Company.
According to preliminary investigation, the mastermind of the robbery had travelled in the sleeper coach bus from Sindhanur and reached Koppal. At the same time, three other accomplices allegedly followed the bus in a separate vehicle.
All four individuals are believed to have conspired in advance and executed the robbery.
The entire robbery was captured on CCTV cameras installed in front of the hotel. The footage clearly shows how the accused boarded the bus and stole the bag containing the gold jewellery.
The visuals also indicate that the suspects appeared to signal each other and arrived one after another before carrying out the theft. Based on these CCTV visuals, police have intensified the investigation.
Using the CCTV footage and details provided by bus passengers, police have launched a massive search operation to identify and trace the accused. Efforts are also underway to gather information on the direction in which the four suspects fled after committing the crime.
Among the accused, one person had travelled in the same bus, while the other robbers followed the bus in a Bolero vehicle. On closer observation, it is suspected that the accused had already noticed where Mohammed and Irshad had obtained the bag containing the jewellery.
The suspects reportedly followed the bus after noticing the bag, after which one of them boarded the bus at Sindhanur while the others continued to follow the bus before executing the theft.
Meanwhile, several questions have also arisen regarding Mohammed and Irshad and the gold bag they were carrying. Questions have been raised about where such a large quantity of gold and diamond jewellery was taken from, and to whom it was being delivered.
Police are also investigating these aspects as part of the probe.