KASARGOD: A team of Kasargod police raided two houses in Kuthuparamba on Wednesday in connection with the robbery of crores of rupees of a jewellery merchant near Cherkala on August 7.
"We raided the houses of Renil and Sayooj and took the statements of their relatives. But the two accused could be in Erode," said Adhur inspector Sibi Thomas, who is leading the investigation. Evidence obtained through cell phone towers pointed the location of Renil and Ayuj to Erode, he said. Police said look out circulars were issued against the accused.
As of now, only one person, a local footballer, has been arrested in the case. The footballer, N K Mrudul (23) of Kuthuparamba in Kannur, was one of the five persons directly involved in the robbery. He reportedly told police the gang paid him Rs 20 lakh for the heist. He also revealed the names of three more persons, including another footballer, Tutu, who asked him to join the gang when he was practising at ground.
Police have requested the court to allow for the identification parade of Mrudul, who is in remand.
The case is an interplay of hawala money, politics, and robbery.
On August 7, Ganesh and Prajesh were carrying huge amount of money belonging to their employer Vikas, a gold jewellery supplier running outlets in Pune and Thalassery. They were transporting the money from Pune to Thalassery.
According to a police complaint, their car was waylaid by a gang of four persons at Bevinje near Cherkala and they were robbed of the entire cash stashed in secret racks.
However, the gold merchant approached the police only on August 20, 13 days after the incident, giving rise to suspicion that they were carrying illegal wealth. He was more interested in a compromise with the robbers, and a section of CPM leaders tried to broker peace, said officers.
But the talks failed and Ganesh, a confidant of Vikas, filed a complaint accusing Prajesh and four others of robbing Rs 1.5 crore. However, Vidyanagar inspector Babu Peringeth said his investigation revealed they lost at least Rs 2.80 crore.