Kerala Theft: Sacred Gold Swap Case Leads to Priest’s Arrest! Read Details

The head priest of the Kuttamperoor Sri Durga Devi Temple in Mannar has been arrested. He allegedly stole the deity's sacred gold ornaments and replaced them with fakes.

Kerala Priest Caught Stealing Temple Gold and Swapping with Duplicates

In a shocking incident from Mannar, the head priest of the Kuttamperoor Sri Durga Devi Temple has been arrested for stealing the temple's sacred gold jewellery.

Mannar police arrested Radhakrishnan Namboothiri, 59, who had been serving as the 'Melshanthi' or head priest at this temple for the last three years. The arrest happened amid some high drama. Namboothiri was actually supposed to step down from his post yesterday. This came after the Chengannur Sub Court issued an order on Thursday for his removal, following an investigation by the temple's official receiver, Advocate M. Sreelekha. The probe was launched due to several complaints against him and was based on a report from the temple 'Thantri', a higher-ranking priest.

During the handover process, the receiver got suspicious about the 'Thiruvabharanam'—the sacred ornaments. When an appraiser checked the jewellery, the truth came out. Ornaments weighing nearly three 'pavan' (around 24 grams) were missing. In their place, he had kept stunningly similar fake jewellery.

When the Mannar police questioned him, Namboothiri confessed to the crime. He admitted to stealing one necklace and two 'thalis' (sacred pendants). He told the police that he had sold the necklace and pawned the lockets. The police even found a pawn receipt on him.

After recording his statement in front of the receiver, the Mannar police took Namboothiri into custody, brought him to the station, and filed a case.

This isn't the first time trouble has brewed around Namboothiri. The Kunnathur Bhaktajana Samithi, a devotees' forum, had raised complaints against him earlier. They are now demanding a full investigation into the temple's assets and finances, and have also asked for the Crime Branch to re-investigate the matter.