BENGALURU: Varthur police have arrested a 22-year-old domestic help employed at a software engineer couple’s house for committing theft from the house over the last nine months.
The culprit’s identity was established when police found a selfie on her phone wearing the stolen ornaments. Booty worth 6 lakh was recovered from her and she has been sent behind bars.
Ranjitha alias Nanditha, of Ramanagaram, was working at an apartment in Toobarahalli at the house of Mukund, a senior software engineer with a private firm.
Police said Ranjitha had given her name as Nanditha when she took up the work. They said she used to steal gold ornaments from the couple’s house when they were out on evening walks as she knew the keys to the safe were in the bedroom.
The couple had not realised the theft as she used to take only one ornament at a time.
Convincing the staff of Manappuram Finance Ltd that she was in trouble and in urgent need of money, Ranjitha would pledge the jewellery there with the help of her friends.
The theft was discovered on the occasion of Ganesha Chaturthi festival when the couple planned to visit a relative and Mukund’s wife found some of her jewellery missing.
When she asked Ranjitha, the latter did not respond properly.
So they grew suspicious of her behaviour and approached Varthur police.
During the course of investigation, police stumbled upon the selfie she had taken wearing the stolen jewellery, on her phone. Later, she confessed to the theft.