Kollam: A theft in a police station is not common. But a mobile phone was stolen from the Anjalumoodu police station, not by a hardened thief but by a local CPM leader, on Tuesday. However, the surveillance camera in the station came to the rescue of the police who arrested the culprit quickly.
The accused Kiran Kumar, 38, a local committee member of Thrikkadavoor, came to the police station to bail out his comrade, Binu Bose, 30, CPM Murunthal branch committee member who was taken into custody on Tuesday for vandalising the wall posters of political parties.
A police patrolling team from Anjalumoodu caught Binu while he was tearing the posters of his own party's candidate. Three others who were with him fled the scene. According to the police, Binu wanted to create tension between the UDF and LDF supporters over the poster issue.
Kiran Kumar, who reached the station to bail out Binu Bose, noticed the police officer's mobile phone lying on the table while he was busy preparing the general diary.
He grabbed the phone, hid it in his pocket and later handed it over to his friend Renjith, who was standing outside the police station.
When the officer noticed that the phone was missing, the policemen reviewed the surveillance camera visuals and identified the thief who dared to steal it from the police station. Kiran Kumar was nabbed by a police team on Tuesday night and brought to the station who confessed to the crime.
The phone was recovered from Renjith's house, but he is absconding.
