Bengaluru: Unable to pay off debt, man turns thief; arrested

Bengaluru: Unable to pay off debts, a 35-year-old man in Bengaluru became a thief.  He has now been arrested for stealing gold ornaments from a temple.

The arrested accused has been identified as Kallesh, a resident of Mandya. He allegedly posed as a staunch devotee and stole gold ornaments of the goddess.

It is said that on August 20, Kallesh visited a temple in Malleswaram and pretended to pray to the god by sitting in front of the idol with his hands folded and eyes closed.

The priest Badrinath was busy with the puja rituals and after a while, Kallesh too left the premises.  The next morning, the priest noticed that two gold ‘Talis’ and a silver chain were missing from the idol.

The CCTV footage showed Kallesh fleeing with a chain. Following this, a police complaint was lodged and Kallesh was arrested.

It was later revealed that he had stolen gold ornaments from several temples in the past using the same modus operandi.  Cops have recovered stolen jewelry worth Rs 4 lakh from him.