Daijiworld News Network - Mangalore (VM)

Suratkal, Feb 4: The Surathkal police station, which enjoys the fame of being declared the best station in DK, has another feature to its cap. The police on Saturday placed a priest behind bars, who stole jewellery worth Rs 1.50 lac from the residence of an elderly woman.

Ganesh Bhat, a full-time orthodox priest turned into a part time thief, was tracked down and arrested within 22 hours after a house burglary case was lodged against him.

Rama, the widow of D Sanjeev Rao, had employed the young Brahmin priest Bhat from Kinnimulky for a monthly salary of Rs 1,500. He had been visiting her residence at Hosa Bettu to perform pooja rituals for the past couple of months. The old woman stayed alone in her house with her only son residing in a foreign country.

On February 3 when Rama opened the cupboard she was shocked to find many of her gold jewellery missing. She lodged a complaint stating that 19.5 pavan jewellery worth over Rs 78,000 were missing from her house.
The police while probing the antecedents of Bhat discovered that though he performed saintly duties, he was a slave to many vices.
 
The police picked up Bhat on suspicion. He later confessed to his involvement in the theft. Bhat had pledged the jewellery for Rs 60,000 and had even spent Rs 20,000 mostly at live bands.