Pics: Spoorthi Ullal
Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru (DV)
Mangaluru, May 16: The Mangaluru city police have arrested two persons of Bihar origin in connection with the theft at Laxmidas Jewellers in Balmatta that took place in the early hours of May 13.
Addressing a press meet at his office here on Saturday May 16, police commissioner S Murugan said that the arrested persons are Mohammed Ifthikar Alam (22), a resident of Rampur, Poorniya district, Bihar, and Mohammed Sabeer (22), a resident of Gatul Belva, Bihar.
The police recovered silver ornaments, laptop, cell phones and other items worth Rs 10 lac from the accused.
Apart from Laxmidas Jewellers, the thieves had also broken into JES Tours and Travels office.
The accused are also involved in other cases in Sampigehalli and Hulimavu police stations of Bengaluru.
A case has been registered against the accused in Mangaluru north police station (Bunder).
The investigation and arrest operation was led by Bunder police inspector Shantharam and his team, under the direction of police commissioner S Murugan, and guided by DCP Vishnuwarshan.
Absconding murder accused arrested after nine years
The police commissioner also informed that the city crime branch (CCB) has arrested a murder accused who was abconding for the last nine years.
The accused, Umesh alias Ummu, a resident of Someshwar, was arrested on Monday May 15 for the murder of Vidyaraj (16) that took place on June 6, 2006.
Elaborating the murder case, the commissioner said, "Vidyaraj, son of Mohandas, a resident of Old Kent Road, Pandeshwar was working as an office boy at Sona Bank near Rao and Rao circle. On June 6, 2006, his employer Robert Castelino gave Rs 62,000 to Vidyaraj and asked him to give it to Akshaya Finance in BC Road. However, Vidyaraj neither reached the finance office nor go home. His father Mohandas then filed a missing complaint in Bunder police station.
"Though efforts were made to trace Vidyaraj, he could not be traced. Mohandas in his complaint had expressed suspicions that Umesh and his friends Sandeep Shetty, Rajesh and Pawan who were doing seizing work for the same bank might have kidnapped Vidyaraj. Acting on the complaint, the police took Sandeep, Rajesh and Pawan into custody and during interrogation, it was revealed that they had indeed kidnapped Vidyaraj.
"It was learnt that on June 6, 2006, Vidyaraj was kidnapped by the four in a Maruti 800, driven by Pawan. They took him to a forest area at Periyashanti in Nellyady and strangled him to death with a bath towel. They stole Rs 62,000 which Vidyaraj had and also his gold ornaments, and after throwing the body into a drain, they escaped from the spot. Umesh, the prime accused, went absconding and managed to evade arrest for nine years," the commissioner said.
"On May 15, based on credible information, the CCB arrested him at Nantoor bus stop. It was learnt that Umesh had been working in a restaurant in Hubballi," he added.
Umesh is also accused in four other cases, including stone-pelting and damaging a bus under Mangaluru rural police station limits in 2004, attempted murder of Nizamuddin in Ullal, and illegal entry into house of Purushottam in Ullal in 2005.
Umesh failed to attend court in all these cases, and later Ullal police opened a rowdy sheet against him.
Also, one of the accused, Sandeep Shetty, was murdeed by Choni alias Keshav Poojary four years ago near his house.
Umesh has been handed over to Bunder police for further investigation.