A week after the sensational heist at Hyderabad’s Nizam Museum, the city police has finally nabbed the two accused who broke in and stole items worth over Rs 100 crore. The police has also managed to recover the loot.
The Hyderabad police had formed 20 teams to nab the culprits. With the help of the surveillance camera footage, the police managed to capture the accused.
The accused have been identified as Mohammad Ghouse Pasha and Mohammad Mubeen, residents of Rajendra Nagar.
Earlier this month, the accused broke into the Nizam Museum which houses valuables of the Nizam of Hyderabad, known to have been one of the richest in world.
Here, police said, the accused robbed a gold tiffin box studded with diamonds and emeralds, a gold cup-saucer set studded with rubies and diamonds, and a golden spoon.
Reports say the accused had also reached out to steal a Holy Quran kept here, which is wrapped in gold, but freaked out when the Azaan began playing in a nearby masjid, and so, fled without it.
“It was a big challenge for us and we formed 20 teams to recover the heritage items and worked tirelessly,” said Commissioner of Police, Hyderabad, Anjani Kumar.
Ghouse Pasha, a Class 7 dropout, is reportedly involved in 15 crime cases of various nature. Meanwhile, accused Mohammad Mubeen, a Class 2 dropout, is said to have been arrested in Saudi Arabia in 2015 for beating up a Pakistani national.
Some 40 day ago, the accused visited the Nizam Museum as tourists, and hatched the plan of the heist.
After pulling of the Hollywood-style heist in the museum, which lacked strong security, the accused tried selling off the booty in Mumbai, but ended up getting caught.
Officer Anjani Kumar said Ghouse is also known as ‘Khooni Ghouse’ for his habit of eating raw meat.
He added that the accused were “so obsessed with the golden tiffin” that they had started eating food from it after stealing it.
The Nizam Museum is located in Purani Haweli, an 18th century structure constructed by Mir Mahabub Ali Khan, the sixth Nizam of Hyderabad.
Police has now requested the museum authorities to enhance security.