Cuttack: The Choudwar Police have successfully cracked a gold chain-snatching case and unearthed a wider criminal network involved in multiple robbery incidents across Cuttack and Bhubaneswar Urban Police Districts, officials said on Thursday.
The case relates to Choudwar Police Station Case No. 629 dated October 18, 2025, registered after a 50-year-old woman, identified as Sandhyarani Pati, was robbed of her gold chain near the Birupa Barrage vegetable market while returning home with her husband. The accused fled the spot towards Jagatpur on a motorcycle.
During investigation, police analysed CCTV footage from entry and exit points around the crime scene and cross-verified it with records of known modus operandi (M.O.) criminals released from Choudwar and Jharpada jails since January 2025. This led to the identification of suspects involved in the crime.
A special investigation team, formed under the supervision of ACP Zone-I Arun Kumar Swain and comprising personnel from Choudwar Police Station and the Special Squad, Cuttack UPD, subsequently apprehended the main accused along with two receivers of stolen property.
The arrested accused have been identified as Bishal Mallick (22) of Balarampur village under Nemalo police limits, and two receivers—Pravakar Samanta (42) of CDA Sector-7 and Kanhu alias Harekrushna Sahoo (31) of Bhanarag village under Mahanga police limits.
Police recovered a total of 97 grams of gold chains of varying weights from their possession, along with a Bajaj Pulsar motorcycle allegedly used in the commission of the crimes.
During sustained interrogation, the accused reportedly confessed to their involvement in a series of chain-snatching and robbery cases in Choudwar, Jagatpur, Sadar and other police station areas under Cuttack and Bhubaneswar UPDs. Police said the accused have criminal antecedents in at least six similar cases registered in 2025.
All three accused were arrested and forwarded to court on Thursday (Feb 5). Further investigation is underway to identify and apprehend other members of the gang and to establish their involvement in additional cases, police added.
