JHARSUGUDA: Jharsuguda police on Friday arrested 13 persons after cracking two separate burglary cases reported earlier this week from different parts of the district.
In the first incident, police arrested nine persons in connection with a robbery at a house in Talmunda village under Laikera police limits on the intervening night of Monday and Tuesday.
The accused are Deepak Khadia (25), Ashok Khadia (20), Ajay Munda (19), Dhananjay Khadia (47), driver of the Bolero used in the crime, Bablu Barabhaya (22), Bhola Nayak (25), Bishal Oram (27) of Sambalpur district, and Biswajit Pasayat (27) of Talamunda. One more accused involved in the case is absconding and a search is on to trace him.
Investigation revealed that the crime was allegedly orchestrated by the prime accused, Biswajit of the same village. Biswajit had recently been booked in a drunk-and-drive case and was worried about arranging money to pay the fine. During this period, he came in contact with Akash, who introduced him to Deepak, a person with previous involvement in burglary cases.
Jharsuguda SP GR Raghavendra said that after receiving the complaint, a case was registered and investigation was taken up on priority. Senior police officers rushed to the spot and secured the crime scene for scientific examination.
During the investigation, police analysed cellular tower dump data and CCTV footage from nearby locations. Multiple teams were formed to track the offenders, while both technical inputs and field intelligence were extensively utilised.
Police recovered several stolen items during the operation. The seized articles include gold and silver ornaments, cash amounting to Rs 1.43 lakh, eight mobile phones, a knife, and a baseball bat, among others.
In another case under Badmal police limits, four persons were arrested for their involvement in a burglary at a mobile repair shop on Thursday. The accused are Sabbir Ali (25) of Giridih in Jharkhand, Mohammad Saddam (21) of Sonbhadra in Uttar Pradesh, Tarun Sumuthar (20) of Purunabasti in Jharsuguda and Siba Sahoo (22) of Haripur in Khordha district. Police said the accused had been staying in Jharsuguda. Cash amounting to Rs 87,000 was recovered from them.
Police said the complainant used to stay inside the shop but had gone out of town during the Holi festival. Taking advantage of his absence, the prime accused Sabbir, an auto-rickshaw driver who lives near the shop, allegedly planned the burglary.