Bengaluru: Koramangala police have arrested a notorious thief involved in house theft cases in the city and recovered valuables worth Rs 31 lakh.
The accused has been identified as Kantharaj alias Morikantha, 42, a resident of Peenya and a native of Chikkaballapur. The police said the accused later came to the city and settled down in Peenya. He was previously arrested and was booked in over 10 criminal cases in the city.
According to the police, with the number of house thefts increasing in South East division, the police had formed a special team to crack down the cases. Based on credible information, the team arrested the accused and recovered 1.19 kg of gold ornaments and 900 grams of silver articles worth Rs 30.97 lakh from him.
The police said that he recently came out of jail and resumed committing thefts and with his arrest the police have solved 13 theft cases in the city.
As for how Kantharaj earned the name Morikantha, a senior officer said that once while committing robbery he was chased by the public and he hid in a sewage pipe to save himself. Since then he started hiding his booty inside a sewage pipe and gained a name of Morikantha.
“The accused used to recce the area in the morning, identify locked houses and break into them in night. He used to sell stolen articles in bits and pieces whenever he needed money,” he added.
The police said that he used to commit thefts to live a lavish life. However, after he got bail, he resumed robberies, but this time it was to pay off the lawyer fees!
