Jewellery stolen from bank locker, owner suspects staff

Jewellery worth Rs 13.5 lakh has gone missing from the lockers of a nationalised bank in southern Bengaluru’s Jayanagar in just a month. The owner suspects that the jewellery was stolen by the bank staff.

Ashok K A, 48, and his wife had kept 250 grams of gold, silver and diamond articles in a locker at the bank branch located at 41st Cross, Jayanagar 8th Block. The bank allotted the couple locker number 159 on July 12. The jewellery included a diamond necklace, gold chains, bangles, earrings, finger rings and gold coins.

Ashok, who lives in Karesandra, Banashankari 2nd Stage, went to the bank on August 12 to take some jewellery. But a bank staffer named Rakesh informed him that the locker had been surrendered the same morning. He got Ashok to sign on a ledger, took him inside the locker room and helped him open the locker.

The bank staffer reiterated that the locker had been surrendered hours earlier. Ashok transferred the jewellery boxes into a bag, emptied the locker and left. Upon reaching home, he was shocked to see the jewellery boxes were empty. When he brought the matter to the notice of the bank staff, he didn’t get a satisfactory response. The next day, he filed a complaint with Jayanagar police.

Police have taken up a case against the bank staff under IPC section 408 (criminal breach of trust by clerk or servant) and are carrying out investigations.