Kolkata, July 29 (IANS) Kolkata Police have arrested a 21-year-old man for allegedly stealing gold jewellery and cash worth around Rs 35 lakh from a residence in the city’s Ekbalpur area, police said on Wednesday.
The accused, identified as Asif Hossain, was arrested by officers of the Detective Department’s Theft Prevention Wing from a resort in New Town, where he had allegedly been hiding. Police said most of the stolen jewellery has been recovered from a concealed compartment inside a cupboard at his residence in Entally.
Investigators also found that he had spent nearly Rs 4 lakh at the resort on entertaining female companions.
According to police, the theft took place at the residence of a couple on M.M. Ali Road in Ekbalpur. The couple had locked their house and left for work, only to return and find a cupboard inside forced open, although the main door lock remained intact. Nearly 201 grams of gold jewellery and Rs 4 lakh in cash were reported missing.
The valuables belonged to the couple’s newly married daughter, who had left them in her parents’ custody before moving to Canada with her husband. The theft triggered a family dispute after the son-in-law allegedly suspected his in-laws and accused them of misappropriating the valuables. The daughter subsequently returned from Canada, following which a complaint was lodged at Ekbalpur Police Station.
The Detective Department took over the probe and analysed CCTV footage from the area, eventually identifying Asif Hossain as the prime suspect. Investigators later tracked him down to a resort in the Rajarhat area, where he had reportedly been posing as a businessman.
During interrogation, the accused told police that the stolen cash had already been spent. Although the jewellery was not recovered initially, a subsequent search of his residence led to the recovery of around 172 grams of gold hidden inside a cupboard. Police said efforts are underway to recover the remaining stolen items and further investigation is continuing.
–IANS
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