KOCHI: Police launched a probe on Saturday after 70 sovereigns of gold ornaments were looted from a locked house at Deshabhimani Road, Kaloor in Kochi. The theft was reported at the house of a senior engineer at Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB).
Forensic experts, fingerprint experts and police dog squad on Saturday morning examined the house after Ernakulam North Police registered a case. According to police, the house located at Friends Lane in Deshabhimani Road has been locked since March 2024. The house owner stayed in Thrissur and his wife who was a bank employee worked in Bengaluru.
The children of the couple were also staying in other states. "The theft took place after 12.40 am on Friday when two unidentified persons scaled the compound wall of the house. They entered the house by breaking the ventilation window of the toilet. After entering the house, they broke open an almirah in the bedroom and stole 70 sovereigns of gold, Rs 10,000 and land documents from the house," a police officer said.
The stolen ornaments were worth around Rs 45 lakhs. The incident came to light after a neighbour on Friday checked footage from the CCTV cameras installed in their house. In the CCTV footage, two persons were seen scaling the compound wall.
Soon, the visuals were sent to the owner of the house. On Friday night, the owner reached the house and confirmed the theft. "Based on the CCTV visuals we have started a bid to identify the accused persons. We are checking accused persons who were recently released from jail. Also, it is being checked whether any other state gang was involved in the incident," a police officer said.