Hyderabad: Antique buyers under lens for museum theft

Hyderabad: Most antique buyers were based in northern states like New Delhi, and police suspect that the thieves would either contact them or try to sell somewhere to get rid of the artefacts, said a source from the Hyderabad Police, about the heist on Sunday evening when antique artefacts were stolen from the museum in Purani Haveli.  “It might take a day or two more but we will nab the men behind this,” he said.

The clues with the officials so far are the two masked faces and Pulsar bike seen in the CC camera, the iron rod left behind and other evidence gathered from the place. Sources from the forensics department said that the case was being looked after by the Task Force Police and that they still did not have a solid clue to lead with.

A ventilator was marked by the burglars who broke inside the Nizam's museum on Sunday night to decamp with artefacts. The particular ventilator which was used to get inside the first floor of the museum had an upward pointing arrow mark, showing that the men had conducted a recce of the place before implementing their plan.

“In an earlier bust pertaining to antiques in Kamareddy, we were told that such burglars usually contact the men in New Delhi and other northern states to trade,” said the DCP, Commissioner's Task Force, P. Radhakrishna Rao. “Based on what we gather as and how the case progresses, we are proceeding ahead. The case is picking up pace and though not in a day or two, we will be cracking it soon and catch the men behind this,” said the official. 

He added that once Northern gangs acquired such items from local crooks, they then sold them in the international market for a huge sum.

The Additional CP, Crimes & SIT, Shikha Goel IPS said about 15 teams were deployed on behalf of the Hyderabad police to catch the thieves and they were chasing every lead possible.

The police has observed the CCTV footage inside the museum but failed to get a clear picture of the thieves.