On July 6, 2013, the accused stole 15 gold and diamond-studded idols from the shrine in Moodbidri. The idols belonged to the 10th century and were worth crores of rupees.
The CCTV cameras of the temple were destroyed by the accused before they could commit the burglary. Further, at the time of the theft, none of the security staff was near the CCTV monitor. There are nearly 52 priceless antique idols in the shrine all of which were placed in a glass enclosure inside a room called Siddhanta Mandira. A CCTV footage had later emerged where only one person wearing a mask could be seen entering the room.
The accused had removed grills and used a gas cutter to gain entry which reportedly makes a lot of noise. Das managed to get away with stealing the idols but had left behind the gas cutter and a portable cylinder. Many of the idols in the shrine were that of Jain Tirthankaras.
Investigations into the matter revealed that Das was the primary accused in the theft and has also played a role in more than 40 other temple thefts.
Speaking to Daijiworld, Sri Sri Swasthisri Charukeerthi Bhattaraka Pandithacharayavariya Swamiji of Jain Math, Moodbidri said, "I am happy about the verdict. He should get life imprisonment. Because, even after he was out on bail he continued to indulge in many theft cases, irrespective of the religious centres. The government of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka should consider this as a special case, and the accused should be brought to Karnataka. As of now, officials of the police department are citing technical problem. He is a habitual offender, hence, the government should take his crime as a serious offence."