Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

‘Productive’ days for burglars

Thiruvananthapuram: House break-ins and burglaries have become a matter of concern for the city police. In the last two months, 88 burglaries were reported in the city. Seventy-seven were reported during night time. The police could solve nearly 30 cases.

City Police Commissioner Ravada Azad Chandrasekhar said the police had arrested over 45 persons in connection with various theft-related offences in the city this year. However, a new set of burglars, who are yet to figure in police records, are at large. He said they operated as groups and individuals and the police have got information on some of them. He said night time vigilance of policemen and residents has helped bring down burglaries in Medical College area.

The thieves who are still at large are giving sleepless nights to the policemen and citizen volunteers on night patrol in their respective neighbourhoods. They seem to have an uncanny ability for breaking into houses without alerting residents. The burglars preferred easily disposable cash and gold ornaments over other costly items. Most of the break-ins occurred between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m. The Commissioner said the most number of thefts were reported from Vanchiyoor, Peroorkada and Poojappura areas. He said efforts were on to police these areas more effectively at night.

In a recent burglary at Poojappura, the thieves had entered a house by bending the bars of the kitchen window. They had used a log found in the backyard of the house for the purpose. The police said the intruders would have spent more than an hour in the house prising open steel almirahs in the bedroom, rummaging through drawers and searching bags. The residents became aware of the crime only in the morning.

The police suspect that some of the burglars are outsiders operating from neighbouring districts in Tamil Nadu. Few are suspected to be from Kollam or Ernakulam. “It is likely that they make their way back to their area of origin in buses and trains which leave the city at dawn,” an official said.

The police said that an increase in burglaries was common during the summer months, a time when many families go on vacation. Burglaries could be checked to a large extent if citizens were more vigilant.

Ideally, those going on long holidays should alert the police or volunteers of the neighbourhood watch. They should ensure that valuables are transferred to bank lockers before leaving their homes.

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