Bhubaneswar, Oct 24: Despite heightened security arrangements by the Commissionerate Police, thieves allegedly stole around 190 mobile phones and more than 15 gold chains from different Durga Puja pandals in Bhubaneswar, taking advantage of heavy crowds during the festivities.The police have arrested nine adult suspects, including four men and five women, along with five juveniles in connection with the thefts. A total of 22 mobile phones, one gold chain and an expensive tablet have been recovered from them.According to the Commissionerate Police, the arrested suspects allegedly belong to groups from Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal. They had reportedly arrived in the state capital and stayed at different locations to carry out thefts at crowded puja pandals.Cases have been registered at six police stations — Nayapalli, Khandagiri, Mancheswar, Sahid Nagar, Sri Lingaraj and Laxmisagar. The accused have been forwarded to court in connection with the cases. Police have also detained 17 suspects at different police stations for questioning.CCTV surveillance, plainclothes personnel deployed.To prevent thefts and robberies during Durga Puja, the Commissionerate Police had installed CCTV cameras at various pandals and deployed around 100 plainclothes personnel at crowded locations, including Sahid Nagar, Nayapalli, Baramunda, Rasulgarh, Jharpada, Unit-I and Bomikhal.Police patrols were also intensified across the city to prevent pickpocketing, mobile phone theft, chain snatching and house burglaries.However, the reported thefts indicate that criminals continued to target visitors despite the security measures.The Commissionerate Police said its special drive, surveillance and intensified patrolling helped keep property-related crimes under control during this year’s Durga Puja.
190 mobile phones, 15 gold chains stolen during Durga Puja in Bhubaneswar; 14 arrested
