Rewind to 1980. It was around midnight when a gang slipped into a ‘nalukettu’ surrounded by acres of rubber, coffee and coconut plantations owned by a businessman named Varghese in Kaduthuruthy.
Inside, the family was asleep. Armed with knives and iron rods, the gang woke up everyone and demanded cash and valuables. They were threatened to hand over keys to cupboards and lockers.
Gold ornaments accumulated over generations, along with cash kept aside from agricultural transactions, were quickly packed into bags.
Within an hour, they would flee with gold ornaments and cash worth nearly Rs 20,000 — a huge sum back then.
“Based on the information we gathered from the family, the robbers appeared unusually confident and organised,” recalls a retired police officer familiar with the case. “They seemed to know exactly where they had to look for valuables.”
The case became a talking point. “People could not believe a gang had walked into a farmhouse and escaped with so much money and jewellery,” says the former officer.
Curious residents gathered outside the farmhouse, discussing theories about who might have committed the robbery. Some suspected an ‘outside gang’. Others believed an insider job.
Investigators focused on the latter theory. “The robbers had ignored several rooms and headed directly to places where valuables were stored,” the former officer recalled. “Nobody unfamiliar with the house could have moved around with such certainty.”
A special investigation team was formed. This was long before CCTV cameras, mobile phones and digital records. Every lead had to be pursued through traditional police work.
Investigators spent weeks questioning workers, former employees, neighbours and traders. Officers travelled across villages chasing rumours and anonymous tips.
Several leads went nowhere. “One informer claimed the gang had fled to Tamil Nadu. Another suggested they belonged to a criminal group from Ernakulam. Both theories eventually collapsed,” the former officer recalls.
The breakthrough came when police received information from a local jeweller about suspicious attempts to sell gold ornaments matching descriptions provided by the victims.
Sleuths followed the trail, which eventually led them to a man suspected to be part of the gang. “Until then, we were chasing shadows. Suddenly we had something concrete,” the former officer says.
“The suspect was placed under surveillance. In those days, surveillance meant long hours at bus stands, tea shops and marketplaces, with plainclothes officers carefully monitoring movements and contacts.”
The operation gradually exposed a four-member gang allegedly headed by Raghavan, a known property offender who frequently moved between districts to avoid detection.
Investigators also learned that one gang member had previously worked in the area and was familiar with Varghese’s property, explaining the gang’s detailed knowledge of the ‘naalukettu’.
Months after the robbery, police received information that Raghavan was hiding near Vaikom. He was arrested.
Information gathered afterwards helped police identify other gang members and recover a substantial portion of the stolen valuables.
“For months, the robbery had dominated conversations across Kaduthuruthy and neighbouring villages,” smiles the former officer. “Cracking the case — one clue at a time — brought much relief to the family as well as the police.”