Maharashtra: Thief Seeks Blessings Before Running Away With Donation Box From Temple

In a bizarre incident, police in Thane, Maharashtra, arrested a burglar for allegedly breaking into a temple and decamping with a donation box.

According to the police, the break-in was reported from the Lord Hanuman temple near the Khopat Bus Depot, Thane (W), Hindustan Times reported.

The incident was reported to the police by Mahant Mahavirdas Maharaj, the priest at the temple. The complainant, in his statement, said that the theft occurred sometime between 8pm and 9.30pm on Tuesday.

It was said that the priest had stepped out for some work during that time period. When he returned, he found that the donation box in front of the idol was missing. The priest informed that the amount in the donation box was ?1,000, the report said.

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The police then examined the CCTV footage inside the temple and saw a young man entering the temple and touching the idol¡¯s feet before picking up the donation box and fleeing the scene.

It was reported that a second accomplice was waiting outside the temple and was seen leaving with the first accused.

¡°We started making inquiries with residents of the area around the temple, working on the assumption that a local would be in the best position to know when there would be the least number of people present in the temple. We showed stills from the CCTV footage to a large number of locals and got several leads as to the identity of the suspects,¡± senior police inspector Sanjay Dhumal, Naupada police station told Hindustan Times.

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After making enquiries, the police started rounding up suspects. It led to them picking up Kejas Mhasde, a resident of Rabodi.

Inquiries then confirmed his involvement in the theft and he also revealed the identity of his accomplice.

Both the accused were placed under arrest late on Thursday night. The police have also recovered the donation box and ?536 cash from the accused.

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