Hyderabad cops nab Chennai gold thieves

Rs The CCS sleuths arrested Champalal Rajpurohith, 26, an employee of Mohanlal Jewellers, Chennai, and his 25-year-old friend Nagendar Singh Rajpurohith. The two hail from Ladunagar hamlet in Barmer district of Rajasthan.Champalal used to work as a gold delivery-cum-cash collection agent for Mohanlal Jewellers, a wholesale gold merchant based in Chennai. On March 25, Champalal's employers sent him to Madurai to collect gold ornaments weighing about 7.76 kilos and Rs 21 lakh cash from a retailer.According to police, Champalal, who had been waiting for an opportunity to steal a good amount to set up his own business in Ahmedabad, immediately alerted his associates, who were already in Chennai, to come to Madurai.After collecting the gold and cash from the retailer in Madurai, Champalal handed over the same to his associates waiting for him in the city. After they left Madurai, Champalal boarded a bus to Chennai. After disembarking at the Chennai Mofussil Bus Terminus (CMBT) on March 26 at 5 am, Champalal went to the K-11 CMBT police station and lodged a false complaint saying that some one had opened his baggage during the bus journey and stolen gold and cash. Accordingly, a case was booked under section 379 (Theft) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).As Champalal gained trust of his employers, they did not suspect him. On Tuesday, Champalal along with Nagendar came to Hyderabad and checked into a lodge in Secunderabad to find prospective buyers for the stolen property. The duo began making discreet enquiries with various gold merchants if they wanted to purchase some ornaments for a less price. One of the merchants alerted police and the duo were nabbed from the lodge on Wednesday. Police recovered the entire stolen property from their possession and handed them over to the Chennai police for further investigation.