Cops Arrest 2 With 25 Stolen Panchaloha Idols
The duo often stole panchaloha, silver idols, temple bells, and even hundi boxes. On June 29 alone, they struck temples in Saddupally and Dandumailaram, stealing 11 idols, including that of Lord Rama, Sita, Lakshman, Hanuman and Ayyappa Swamy.
Hyderabad: In a series of theft of idols from temples under the Rachakonda commissionerate limits, the joint team of CCS, LB Nagar and Ibrahimpatnam police arrested two individuals, who were committing crimes, under the influence of alcohol.
According to police, accused have been identified as K. Sivananda, 52, a habitual offender from Vanasthalipuram and Shaik Ham Shareef, 38, a migrant worker from Prakasam district. Both were apprehended at Mangalpally crossroads with stolen idols and temple items worth Rs 5.36 lakh. Speaking to reporters, Rachakonda police commissioner G. Sudheer Babu said, “The duo conspired to make easy money and bonded over alcohol. Frequently visiting liquor shops together, they became close and hatched plans to commit thefts.”
“Their targets were temples located in Ibrahimpatnam, Abdullapurmet and nearby villages, which had no CCTV cameras. They used to have recce of the place by travelling on an auto-rickshaw or a bike. Both were committing crimes since February 2025.”
The duo often stole panchaloha, silver idols, temple bells, and even hundi boxes. On June 29 alone, they struck temples in Saddupally and Dandumailaram, stealing 11 idols, including that of Lord Rama, Sita, Lakshman, Hanuman and Ayyappa Swamy. “The accused sold stolen goods to a scrap dealer named Akkapalli Kranthi Kumar of Uppal for `18,500, and spent the proceeds of the crimes on alcohol and personal expenses. On June 30, the two accused visited the Ibrahimpatnam area and decamped with the booty from temples after breaking open the lock with crowbars. They stole idols and then headed to a Hanuman temple and took away four panchaloha idols along with the gold mangalsutra from there,” the Rachakonda CP, said.
Police recovered 25 panchaloha idols, 8 one gram gold chains, weighing machines, tools used for break-ins and four mobile phones from them. The bike used in the crime was reportedly stolen from Uppal. Acused Sivananda wanted in several cases of idol and vehicle theft in Warangal and Rachakonda jurisdictions, on the other, Shareef is a newbie. The arrests were made by the CCS, LB Nagar and Ibrahimpatnam police jointly after credible inputs. The Rachakonda police commissioner commended the police teams for their swift action as well as recovery of stolen idols and other items belonging to several temples.
