KOCHI: A string of incidents of theft, apparently by the same person, has left residents of Chandrathil road, Edappally panicked for the past few days. The fact the thief is yet to be nabbed has added to their fears. The thefts began a week ago, when a resident woke up in the morning to find the Rs 2,000 he had kept in his wallet on the table in his bedroom missing. The resident had left the window open at night and the thief allegedly stole the money using a pole he took from the neighbour’s house. The mosquito net of the window was found torn through which the pole was inserted. The CCTV camera recorded the event around 1.30 am.
The next night, this was repeated in another house, located near the first. The thief stole a handbag from the room but abandoned it on the car parked in the porch as there was no money in it.Around 1.30 am on Monday, a girl in another house was left terror-stricken after she saw a man’s figure outside the house’s window, removing the curtain by inserting his hand inside through a hole he had made in the mosquito net. The girl, who was studying at the time, screamed in panic which led to other residents and some guests rushing to the area. However, the thief vanished by then. The same night, five other houses reported ‘break-ins’. But no money was stolen.
Following this, the Chandrathil Road Residents’ Association, Swaraksha, filed a complaint with the Elamakkara police and submitted CCTV visuals. The complaint cited similar incidents were reported from Elamakkara and Ponekkara, too. “An investigation is under way. We have stepped up night patrolling in the area,” said an officer with the Elamakkara police station.
The thefts began a week ago, when a resident woke up in the morning to find the Rs 2,000 he had kept in his wallet on the table in his bedroom missing. The resident had left the window open at night and the thief allegedly stole the money using a pole he took from the neighbour’s house.