Holiday heist: Diamonds worth ₹32 crore stolen

SURAT: In one of the biggest diamond thefts in recent memory, rough and polished stones worth over Rs 32 crore were stolen from a unit in the Kapodra area in the city in Gujarat, after thieves cut open an iron safe. Police suspect the burglary took place sometime between Aug 15 and 17, when most business establishments were closed for the Janmashtami festival and the extended weekend. The robbers also took away CCTV cameras and DVR from the unit.

According to the complaint, owner Devendra Chaudhary's manager Hanuman locked the unit on the afternoon of Aug 15, after which it remained shut for three days. On Monday morning, a neighbouring unit owner alerted Chaudhary that the main gate's lock was broken.

On checking the safe, Chaudhary discovered that diamonds and cash had been stolen. A stock verification revealed that 1,12,487 carats of diamonds worth Rs 32.48 crore and Rs 5 lakh in cash were missing. TNN