In Bengaluru, a worker stole 10kg of silver worth ₹35 lakh from his shop to fund online gambling. Police tracked him and his accomplice to Rajasthan after they prayed at temples. All stolen silver was recovered, and arrests made.
This Bengaluru incident shows how far an online gambling addiction can push someone. A worker stole silver jewellery worth about ₹35 lakh from his own polishing shop. The Halasuru Gate police later arrested him and his friend while they were offering prayers at temples, hoping to sell the stolen items and win at gambling.
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Here's what happened
The police have identified the arrested men as Narendra and his accomplice, Kuldeep. For the past month, Narendra was working at 'Dhanalakshmi Rhodium', a jewellery polishing shop near Bengaluru's City Market. This shop is in the Halasuru Gate police station area and used to get silver jewellery from many shops for polishing.
The accused, Narendra, had a serious online gambling addiction. He had already lost lakhs of rupees and was desperate to get the money back. Narendra thought that if he invested ₹10 lakh at once, he could make a big profit and clear his debts. So, he decided to steal from his workplace, which was easy because he had the shop keys.
The moment he got a chance, Narendra stole about 10.12 kg of silver jewellery. He immediately took a train and escaped to his home state, Rajasthan. There, he met his friend Kuldeep and together they sold about 3 kg of the stolen silver.
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A tour of temples
Here's the strange part. After the theft, the accused visited the famous Mahakaleshwar temple in Ujjain and also went to Prayagraj to offer prayers. They did this so they wouldn't get caught and could sell the rest of the silver for a high price. They strangely believed that praying to God would bring them luck in gambling and double their stolen money.
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Swift action by the police
The Halasuru Gate police started investigating as soon as the shop owner filed a complaint. Using technical clues, a police team tracked the accused all the way to Rajasthan. They successfully arrested Narendra and Kuldeep there. The police have recovered the entire 10.12 kg of silver jewellery, worth ₹35 lakh. They are now searching for one more person involved in this case.