Temple theft gang busted in Kerala; three held, online taxi car used for crimes

THODUPUZHA: Three key members of a gang allegedly involved in stealing from places of worship across Kerala have been arrested. The gang used an online taxi car to carry out the thefts, police said.

The arrested are Ameer Hamsa (26), a native of Assam residing in Perumbavoor; Ubaid (38), an online taxi driver from Kootumukham in Taliparamba, Kannur; and Razak alias Anas (54), a resident of Thammanam, Ernakulam, who allegedly purchased the stolen goods.

The police have intensified their search for Sumeer, a native of Bengal, who is also believed to be part of the gang.

The investigation began after the Amaramkavu Devi Temple at Kolani in Thodupuzha was targeted for the second time on the third. The first theft took place between midnight on May 31 and the early hours of June 1. The thieves broke open three hundi boxes and stole around Rs 15,000.

In the second theft on the third, the gang allegedly stole around 60 metal oil lamps, two urulis and two hanging lamps. Hundi boxes worth around Rs 70,000 were also damaged.

The Thodupuzha police examined CCTV footage as part of the investigation and identified two cars suspected to have been used in the crimes. One of them was found to be regularly operating as an online taxi, leading investigators to its driver, Ubaid. The suspects were subsequently arrested from Ernakulam.

District Police Chief Dr A. Naseem said this was the first time in Kerala that a gang using an online taxi car to carry out thefts had been arrested.

Police recovered all the items stolen from various temples in Ernakulam and Idukki districts from Anas’s shop in Thammanam. According to police, a person from Pattambi had been purchasing the stolen articles from Anas’s shop.