Chandigarh: The police today arrested two persons for allegedly stealing around Rs 10 lakh from a temple here.
The theft happened at the Sai Dham temple in Sector 29 here in the early hours of Friday.
Police said that they received a complaint on Friday from the temple trust after its workers had found the donation box inside the premises broken and the money missing.
Police said the main accused had allegedly entered the premises through a window on the first floor and also damaged the CCTV cameras installed there.
The other arrested man was waiting with a scooter outside and helped him escape.
The police tracked down their whereabouts with the help of their mobile signal location and set up a barricade in the Sector 29 area. The two, who were travelling in a car, were then arrested in connection with the theft.
They have been identified as Amarjit Singh, who is the main accused, and Ajay.
They were produced before a court today which remanded them in police custody till tomorrow.
An amount of around Rs 3.5 lakh has been recovered from their possession so far. A toy airgun was also found on them, police said.
“During the course of interrogation suspect Amarjit alias Sonu said that he had a mobile shop at Kajheri village here, but suffered heavy losses in his business. He also told the police that he was a regular visitor of Sai temple here for the last 7 to 8 years and was well-versed with the temple’s structure,” a police official said.
Police said that on June 23, Amarjit allegedly purchased two SIM cards from Burail here on a fake ID and also arranged two mobile sets.
“On June 28, he planned the theft with co-accused Ajay and also conducted a recce planning how to enter and exit the temple. On intervening night of June 29-30, Amarjit gained entry into the temple by breaking open the window of first floor of the temple and once inside he also brushed the CCTV cameras with the black paint and damaged them. He also wore a black gown and a mask to conceal his identity,” the official said.
After exiting the temple from the point of ingress, he called his co-accused from the mobile phone which he had specially purchased for the crime and both escaped from the spot on a scooter.
“After committing the theft both the accused went to Amarjt’s house and kept the stolen money in a car,” he said.
—PTI