MARGAO, Jan 10 (TOI): Burglary in temples is never without a rich haul. The one that was reported at the Jain Mahavir temple early Monday morning at Mugali in Sao  
 
Jose de Areal was a repeat story except that the burglars could not carry the heavy metal donation box beyond a certain distance and had to drop it in the hilly terrain some half a kilometre from the temple.

Sniffer dogs trailed a distance and helped police recover the box that had not been broken open. However, the burglars are still at large.

Maina Curtorim PI Dharmesh Angle said the pujari of the temple called at around 6 am to inform him about the burglary. The police team rushed to the site and found the lock of the main door broken and the silver arch around the deity (Lord Mahavira) along with other ornamental items stolen. It is estimated that the total loss could be around Rs 1.50 lakh, but with the recovery of the donation box, police peg the net loss at around Rs 1 lakh.

"We are hopeful of a breakthrough in the case,'' said Angle, who incidentally made his last round close to the temple at around midnight. "Our police van also made a stop near the temple at around 3 am on Monday,'' he said. The theft is expected to have taken place somewhere between 8.30 pm on Sunday and 6 am on Monday when the pujari reached the premises to perform puja.

Police believe that the heavy box was dropped because the burglars might have apprehended being nabbed by police patrolling teams during the night.