Idol Theft Gang Busted, 6 Arrested In Odisha’s Kendrapada

Kendrapada: Police have busted a gang involved in theft of idols and recovered 9 idols of precious stones from their possession in Odisha’s Kendrapada district.

Speaking to media about the gang, Kendrapada SDPO on Friday said the gang was busted while the police were investigating a case of theft of electrical equipment.

As per the case, an electrical engineer had filed a complaint at Marsaghai police station stating that electrical equipment worth more than Rs 50 lakh had been stolen from a site on January 21. A special team was formed to investigate the case on the order of Kendrapada SP.

During investigation, the team could know that a car was used in the crime. During questioning, car owner Narayan Behera of Kundapatna village under Kisan Nagar police station revealed about involvement of two other persons of the same village – Prabhas Sahu and Jyoti Prakash Behera – in the crime.

As per the revelation made by Prabhas and Jyoti, police conducted a raid on the house of Hemant Nayak of Bhatimunda village and recovered the stolen electrical equipment.

The SDPO said during the raid, the police team stumbled upon 9 idols made of ‘Astadhatu’ (8 precious metals) from Nayak’s house and seized those. Six persons have been arrested in this connection, he added.

He also said it has come to light from preliminary investigation that the gang was involved in stealing precious idols from across the state. The arrested persons have divulged the names of other persons associated with them. Though the places from where the seized idols were stolen have not been ascertained, further investigation is on, he added.