Bengaluru: Four jewel thieves nabbed, gold worth Rs 43 lakh recovered
Bengaluru: Four notorious robbers who used to carry out burglaries in jewellery stores were arrested by the Subramanya Nagar police on Friday. They were reportedly involved in five cases of robbery between 2011 and 17, including one failed attempt on February 19 this year, which led to their arrest. The outlets of Chemmanur Jewellers were robbed four times, three in the city and one at Chikkaballapura.
The accused have been identified as Samrat alias Shivu alias Shivamurthy, 30, a resident of Kothanur, his younger brother Shankar, 26, and his two associates, Nivesh Kumar, 29, and and Jagadish, 34.
Nivesh is a B.Com graduate and was working as a facility manager in a private company in Whitefield, while Jagadish was running a silver melting shop in Chennai.
articles seized by the police
Shiva, Shankar and Nivesh are residents of Bengaluru, while Jagadish hails from Maharashtra.
Police have solved four robbery cases in Chemmanur Jewellers outlets and one in Santosh Jewellers in Ramamurthy Nagar in 2017, two cases of bike theft in Chikballapura and Maharashtra.
According to the police, the two brothers, Shivu and Shankar, are sons of an astrologer and they took to crime at the age of 23 and 19.
Shivu is an eighth standard dropout, while Shankar who was pursuing his B.Com degree got drawn towards leading a lavish life and easy money.
Shivu, the mastermind, took the lead and planned a robbery at Santosh Jewellers in Ramamurthy Nagar in 2011. The duo later committed four robberies at Chemmanur Jewellers outlets – once in Peenya, twice in Subramanya Nagar police station limits in the city and one at Chikkaballapura police station limits.
They had robbed more than 8 kg of gold and Shivu disposed most of them in Sri Lanka and later with the help of Jagadish he disposed some in Chennai.
Shivu spent all the money on expensive cars and tried to enter the real estate business. However he was not successful and incurred losses.
Shankar completed his B.com degree and joined a reputed coaching institute to prepare for UPSC civil services, but he could clear the preliminary exam.
The first robbery only whetted Shivu’s appetite for luxurious life and he decided to focus on jewellery shops, as banks were difficult to rob due to tight security.
Shivu, crime show buff, learned his trade from TV
Bengaluru: Shivu, who was obsessed with watching crime serials and Hollywood thrillers, decided to commit big ticket robberies. He learnt to make petrol bombs and use crackers to spark panic and distract people.
A senior official said Shivu was using iron rods and a pepper spray, but then started making petrol bombs. In April 2017, he tried to smuggle a country-made weapon from UP but failed. He then obtained custommade armour from Maharashtra. Shivu later sent Shankar to China for bullet proof jackets and Shankar booked three, which were brought into the country by courier.
In 2017, he rented a house in Vinayaka Nagar, Devanahalli, where he planned robberies with Jagdish and Nivesh. Nivesh, who had financial problems, agreed, and Jagdish was lured by the promise of a lavish life.
Only July 1, last year Shivu, Shankar and Jagadish robbed the Chemmanur Jewellers outlet at Chikkaballapur by attacking the guards with sharp weapons. They decamped with 600 gram of gold jewellery and a rifle from the injured guard.
