Goods worth Rs 10 lakh stolen from city mall

AHMEDABAD :  Thieves went shopping at Big Bazaar mall on SG Highway on Saturday night as 22 digital cameras, two video cameras, 75 mobile phones and two laptops — worth Rs 10.13 lakh—were stolen from the digital goods section of the store.

Investigating officials believe the thieves had a good knowledge of the store layout. According to Satellite police station officials, Big Bazaar officials reported a theft at the store at 12 noon on Sunday. The theft came to light at 9.30 am when the beat guards went to the first floor of the store.

A twist in the tale came later in the day when cops located a gunny bag containing 22 of the 24 stolen digital cameras and three high-end Nokia mobile phones at a deserted spot behind the mall.

“The digital goods section was targeted primarily. The burglars seemed to know this section does not have a CCTV camera for surveillance, nor does it have any illumination at night. The thieves entered the building by removing the wooden frame of a toilet window on the first floor,” said MR Gupta, inspector of Satellite police station. The mall has two guards in its front and back. The thieves, however, targeted the right side of the store surrounded by thorny bushes and a water-logged section, making it inaccessible for the guards. The adjoining plot is empty.

“It is likely that the thieves might have come in a group. We suspect they used a two-wheeler to carry the stolen goods. This will explain why they had dumped the sack containing the cameras and three high-end phones, worth Rs 1.40 lakh,” said HB Jamod, inspector of Satellite police station.

Cops have asked for footage of CCTVs to know more about suspicious visitors to the mall. “This is a well-planned operation and theburglars had done their homework. It is possible that the burglars had visited the mall posing as customers,” said police officials.