Bengaluru, Apr 16 (IANS): The Bengaluru police on Friday arrested a 38-year-old person for allegedly decamping with a bag containing gold ornaments and a Toyota Innova car in two different cases.
According to the police, the accused is identified as B. K. Siddappa aka Sanjay from Mandya district in Karnataka.
The police said that Siddappa's modus operandi was simple. First he approached people with vehicles, especially SUV owners and asked them to give him employment as a driver.
"Once he was appointed as driver, he used to earn their trust and leave that job and find work elsewhere. To find a job he has used - Covid job loss - as an excuse to find a new job. He got attracted to easy money by stealing in previous owners' houses. He was not caught until the first case of thievery was registered with us (Bagalgunte police station limits) on January 18, 2021," the police said.
The police added that the couple who lodged complaint in January 2021, had lost a bag containing gold ornaments valued around Rs 18 lakh in August 18, 2020.
"On that day, their only son was at home and this bag was kept under the cot in their bedroom. Sanjay had come to meet the owner of the bag and complainant Usha on that day. Usha who wanted to go out of her house to meet someone nearby by leaving both accused Siddappa and her son, Dhanush. Within an hour she returned but by then Siddappa had left home," the complaint claimed.
After this, when Usha wanted to keep some items in a bag that contained gold ornaments, realised that the box containing her jewellery was missing. "Upon inquiry, her son revealed that Siddappa had entered their bedroom in her absence. Suspicion grew, but it was not concrete. After giving a lot of thoughts the couple decides to file a complaint only in January 2021 against him, such was the trust reposed on him by the couple," the police explained.
The police arrested him based on intelligence tip off, and to their surprise, they also recovered a Toyota Innova car and a bike that was stolen from a travel agency in 2015 of Chikkabanavara. "Siddappa had worked here and earned his owners trust, so the suspicion never grew on him," the police said.
The police have registered a case and investigations are on.