Jharsuguda: In a major crackdown on organised property crime, Jharsuguda Police on Sunday busted an inter-district burglary gang that exclusively targeted Foreign Liquor (FL) shops and arrested four habitual offenders from Ganjam district. The police solved two linked burglary cases registered under Orient and Banharpali police stations within 50 hours of their registration.
The accused have been identified as Prasanta Behera (23) of Padhala village under K Nuagaon police station, Kisan Pandi (22) of Ramapoli village under Kodala police station, Narayan Jena alias Mithun (25) of Balipadar village under Buguda police station and Chitrasen Jena alias Chintamani alias Chitra (23) of Arakhpur village under Buguda police station, all in Ganjam district.
According to police, the gang had developed a specialised modus operandi of targeting only Foreign Liquor shops and was involved in organised inter-district property crimes.
The two burglary cases were registered on July 9 after unidentified miscreants broke into FL shops under Orient and Banharpali police station limits during the intervening night of July 8 and 9. In the Orient incident, the accused allegedly assaulted and overpowered the night watchman, tied him up, damaged his mobile phone and fled with cash and liquor bottles.
Soon after receiving information about the incidents, Jharsuguda Superintendent of Police, along with the SDPO of Brajarajnagar and senior police officers, visited the spots and supervised the investigation. Multiple Special Investigation Teams (SITs) were constituted and teams were dispatched to Gajapati and Berhampur. Parallel investigations involving CCTV footage analysis, technical surveillance, intelligence gathering and field verification were also launched.
The investigation revealed that Prasanta Behera was the mastermind behind the crimes. Familiar with the area due to his relatives residing under the Orient police station limits, he allegedly recruited the other three accused, all of whom had previously worked with him in Surat.
The accused reportedly hired a Bolero vehicle from Berhampur and travelled to Jharsuguda. After conducting reconnaissance of several liquor shops, they selected their targets and carried out burglaries at the FL shops before fleeing the district.
Police verification further revealed that all four accused are habitual offenders and have been involved in multiple burglary cases in Ganjam, Nayagarh, Khurda and Bhubaneswar districts.
The police seized Rs 35,700 in cash, a Mahindra Bolero bearing registration number OR-05-AC-9888 used in the crime, two crowbars, one Digital Video Recorder (DVR), three mobile phones belonging to the accused, broken locks and other incriminating articles.
Police said the swift detection of the cases within 50 hours highlighted the effectiveness of technology-driven policing, scientific investigation and coordinated inter-district operations. Further investigation is underway to ascertain the involvement of the accused in similar burglary cases across Odisha and neighbouring states.
