JHARSUGUDA: On Sunday, the Jharsuguda police successfully dismantled a gang involved in inter-district burglaries specifically targeting foreign liquor (FL) shops, leading to the arrest of four suspects linked to the recent thefts from two establishments.
The suspects, identified as Prasanta Behera (23), Kisan Pandi (22), Narayan Jena alias Mithun (25), and Chitrasen Jena (23), are all from Ganjam district. Their arrests occurred just two days after they allegedly broke into FL shops within the jurisdictions of Orient and Banharpali police stations during the night of July 8-9.
During these burglaries, both cash and liquor bottles were stolen. The incident at the Orient police station area turned particularly violent, with the suspects reportedly assaulting and restraining the night watchman, damaging his mobile phone, and escaping with the stolen items.
Following the incidents, police registered two separate cases on July 9. SP Gundala Reddy Raghavendra oversaw the investigation, which involved the formation of multiple special investigation teams. Some teams were dispatched to Gajapati and Berhampur, while others analyzed CCTV footage, collected technical intelligence, and conducted thorough field investigations.
During a press briefing, Jharsuguda SP GR Raghavendra indicated that Prasanta was the gang’s mastermind, familiar with the area due to his aunt living within the Orient police jurisdiction. All four suspects had previously worked together in Surat.
Upon reviewing their criminal backgrounds, police found that each of the suspects had a history of property crimes, with several burglary cases registered against them across Ganjam, Nayagarh, Khurda, Bhubaneswar, and Cuttack Rural districts.
Further inquiries revealed that the gang specifically targeted FL shops, as these establishments typically have minimal security and surveillance measures in place, according to the SP.
