Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore (SP)

Mangalore, May 2: A gang of thieves which entered Vorkady Naringana Devandapadpu Lord Mahavishnu temple late night on Friday May 1, succeeded in fleeing with booty worth thousands of rupees.

The thieves, besides taking away cash found in four donation boxes, also took away a silver chain, a gold chain studded with pearls and silver eyes of the presiding deity.

It is suspected that there were three members in the gang of thieves that broke open the locks of the front door and of the sanctum sanctorum. Surprisingly, they have left behind a valuable idol made of Panchaloha (alloy of five metals) and the idol of the presiding deity. The value of the stolen assets is estimated at Rs 25,000.

The same team reportedly tried to break into Bola St Lawrence Church at night. As Fr Pradep Correa woke up, alerted by the sounds created them, the thieves fled under the cover of darkness.

Some people claimed, the team had three thieves, all of whom were holding torches and that they had parked a car about a kilometre away from the temple. The policemen are said to be trying to reach the culprits, based on the registration number of the car that they have accessed.