Kochi: The Kochi police on Friday booked a Portuguese national who had entered the Ernakulam Siva Temple premise after scaling the wall on the night of March 16 for trespassing as the probe so far found he had no intention to cause any security threat. The police move would mean that Pedro Miguel Rapose, 23, taken into custody again from Goa and brought to the city by Friday night, will have to face legal hurdles before flying back home. The cops took him straight to the temple to collect evidence.
The Kochi police had launched a fresh probe against the Portuguese national, who was let off after questioning soon after the incident, after the temple authorities lodged a complaint that the CCTV cameras inside the temple premises had mysteriously blacked out during the period when the foreigner was inside. Assistant commissioner of police K. Laljy said the investigations so far found that he had no intention to cause any security threat. “However, a case of trespassing has been lodged. Now, he can leave the country only after the completion of the court proceedings,” he said.
The cops again interrogated him in detail but he foreigner reiterated his stand that he was in search of a place to sleep. “The investigation is still in progress. The CCTV cameras are not Wi-Fi enabled and hence an outsider cannot cause any technical glitch,” the officer said. The staff of the temple caught hold of the foreigner when he entered the temple and handed him over to the police. The cops let him off after a preliminary round of interrogation and verification of his travel documents which suggested that he had entered India from Iran.
