Serial burglar arrested; gold, bikes & car recovered in Bengaluru

Bengaluru: The Sampangiramanagar police have arrested a man involved in house burglaries and vehicle thefts, recovering 384 grams of gold ornaments, 107.6 grams of silver articles, a car, and two two-wheelers, all valued at around Rs 40 lakh.

Bengaluru City Police Commissioner B Dayananda said that, on April 21, police officers on routine patrol spotted a man suspiciously lingering near a tea shop within the premises of the station.

The man was identified as Ashoka, 30, a resident of the city. Upon inspecting his two-wheeler, officers discovered iron rods and other burglary tools, prompting them to detain him for questioning.

During interrogation, Ashoka confessed to robbing two homes in Byadarahalli and stealing motorcycles from Chandra Layout and Chennammanakere Achukattu. Cases have been registered at the respective police stations.

"He had sold the stolen gold ornaments to a metal worker in Tumakuru and used the money to purchase a second-hand Ford car. The car has also been recovered," Dayananda said.

Ashoka reportedly admitted to selling the ornaments to a 40-year-old metal worker named Renukaprasad, who told the police that he melted the jewellery into gold bars, keeping 70 grams for himself and selling the rest to a jeweller in Tumakuru. The police recovered the gold bars over the next three days.

Authorities have launched a manhunt for Ashoka’s accomplice. "Ashoka has been arrested before. There are at least seven to eight theft cases against him in various police stations across the city,” an officer from the Sampangiramanagar police station said.