Pocharam IT corridor police on Monday arrested one Sheelamshetti Venkata Ramana, 50, from Jodimetla for theft. The police had about 10 years ago rehabilitated him and set up a tiffin centre so that he could earn a livelihood.
Police said Ramana was a repeat offender. Police were acting on the complaint of a theft in a house at Swaranigiri Colony in which 14.96 tolas gold ornaments and 28 tolas of silver ornaments were stolen. Police said Ramana faced 250 cases in the Telugu states and had been jailed.
He was counselled by the then Cyberabad police commissioner C.V. Anand to lead a good life, and provided a tiffin centre in Uppal, and was released from prison in 2014. Ramana ran the tiffin centre for four years, but took to burglary again. He was arrested and sent to jail in April 2023 by Nalgonda II town police, but continued to burgle houses upon his release.
Police said Ramana uses disguises to conceal his identity, surveys the area and identifies locked houses. He breaks open the door, steals valuable items and escapes through the pre-planned routes, police said.
Police recovered a total of 21 tolas of gold ornaments, 1 kg of silver and `1.5 lakh cash from Ramana.
