MAYILADUTHURAI: A 1.5-kg gold ingot worth Rs 2 crore, allegedly stolen by a 16-year-old boy from a gold jewellery melting unit on January 12, was recovered from the Mayiladuthurai railway station within three hours after swift police action, said Mayiladuthurai Superintendent of Police G Stalin on Tuesday in a press meet.
Sources said the minor, a native of Maharashtra, worked at the gold melting unit at Naseem Complex behind the old bus stand in Mayiladuthurai. The theft occurred at a unit run by P Sukesh (48), under the name Sri Krishna Testing Agency.
On Monday evening, Sukesh had melted jewellery received from a private jewellery shop into a gold ingot with the help of the minor. He then handed it over to the boy to clean it, after which the boy allegedly fled with the gold. Upon realising, it Sukesh lodged a complaint with the town police, following which an investigation was initiated.
Two special teams of police intensified checks at the Mayiladuthurai railway station, bus stand, and district border check-posts, and alerted neighbouring districts. Acting on a tip-off, police detained the juvenile near the Mayiladuthurai railway station. Based on his statement, the stolen gold ingot was recovered in full, and he was sent to the Government Observation Home in Thanjavur on Tuesday.