Karnataka: Duo arrested for stealing gold worth Rs. 16 lakh from bank locker

Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], May 16 (ANI): A complaint was filed on January 18 at Basaveshwaranagar Police Station by a bank manager residing in Byadarahalli. The complainant, employed at a bank in Basaveshwaranagar, prompted police to initiate an investigation into the matter.
The complainant had utilised a locker facility at the bank, where gold ornaments, a bank chequebook, degree certificates, mark sheets, and other documents were stored.
The locker was last verified in May 2024, at which point all belongings were confirmed to be intact. However, upon reopening the locker on December 30, it was discovered that approximately 200 to 250 grams of gold ornaments were missing. Since only bank staff had access to the locker room, suspicion arose against internal staff of the bank. This suspicion was noted in the complaint.
Continuing the investigation from multiple angles and gathering inputs from informants along with technical evidence, on March 20, police detained an individual residing at a house in NGOS Colony, Kamalanagar, which falls under the jurisdiction of the station. Upon interrogation, the individual confessed to having committed the theft in collusion with a female colleague working at the bank.

On March 21, the accused was produced before the court and was remanded to police custody for nine days.
During detailed interrogation, the accused revealed that with the help of the female colleague, they used the bank's keys to open the locker, steal gold ornaments, and then lock the locker again to make it appear undisturbed.
After stealing the ornaments, the accused sold them at a jewellery shop located in Agrahara Dasarahalli.
On March 29, the accused was produced before the court, which remanded him to judicial custody. On April 15, the female accused, the bank employee, was granted anticipatory bail by the court and has cooperated with the investigation.
Meanwhile, on May 13, a total of 170 grams of gold ornaments were recovered from the owner of the jewelry shop. The value of the seized ornaments is Rupees 16 lakh.
The successful investigation was carried out under the leadership of Deputy Commissioner of Police, West Division, Girish S. IPS, with guidance from Assistant Commissioner of Police, Vijayanagar Sub-Division, Chandan Kumar N, and the team led by Inspector Chikkaswamy and other officers/staff of Basaveshwaranagar Police. (ANI)