The accused, Bharat Mallick, who had decamped with idols from Lord Ram temple in Dandisahi under Pattamundai model police station limits was arrested after a chase on the river water on Sunday.
(representational image)
A suspected idol thief who forced the police on a tough chase for two hours in Brahmani River in Odisha’s Kendrapara district was taken into custody with fire brigade personnel lending helping hands to the cops.
The accused, Bharat Mallick, who had decamped with idols from Lord Ram temple in Dandisahi under Pattamundai model police station limits was arrested after a chase on the river water on Sunday.
The high drama enacted on the swirling river water was witnessed by curious villagers on both sides of the river.
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Acting on a tip-off, police raided his house on Sunday and seized the stolen idols and other valuable items. But he managed to flee from his house and jumped into the river water to evade arrest. Expert in swimming, the accused had virtually played hide and seek game with perturbed policemen.
With the help of locals and fire brigade personnel, we could arrest him after chasing around two hours in the river. We used two boats to catch him mid-water after surrounding him in the river water, said Sandhyarani Behuria, the Sub- Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) of Pattamundai.
During interrogation, the accused confessed that he managed to force his way into the sanctum sanatorium of the temple by breaking open the main door and looted the temple, added the police officer.
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