Notorious thief Santosh Rathore nabbed by Pundag police; stolen goods and bike recovered
Ranchi: The police have successfully solved a recent theft case in the Pundag Outpost (OP) area by arresting Santosh Kumar Rathore, a cunning interstate thief. The accused has committed thefts across multiple districts in Jharkhand, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh and has previously served jail time on several occasions.
According to the police, a theft occurred on the night of June 6–7 after the lock of a locked house near the Lajpat Nagar temple was broken. Following the registration of an FIR, a special team led by the DSP (Hatia) was constituted under the instructions of the Senior Superintendent of Police. CCTV footage and technical analysis revealed that the accused used to carry out the crime between 2:00 AM and 4:00 AM, riding a blue Apache motorcycle.
The police conducted continuous night-time vehicle checks. Around 2:30 AM on the night of June 9–10, a suspicious individual was spotted during a vehicle check in front of the Pundag police station. Upon seeing the police, the accused attempted to flee but was surrounded and apprehended. During interrogation, he identified himself as Santosh Kumar Rathore (37), a resident of Sundargarh, Odisha. An iron rod used for breaking locks and the stolen Apache motorcycle were recovered from his possession.
Under rigorous interrogation, the accused confessed to his involvement in the theft in the Pundag area. Based on information provided by him, stolen jewelry, silver items, and cash were recovered from a rented room in Anand Nagar, Kamre.
Police investigation also revealed that multiple criminal cases were already registered against the accused. He has previously been incarcerated in jails in Rourkela, Raipur, Hotwar, and Baloda Bazar.
The recovered items include approximately 90 grams of gold jewelry, 450 grams of silver articles, and ₹5,770 in cash. The police are also investigating the accused's involvement in other criminal cases. Several police officers and personnel, including Hatia DSP Neeraj Kumar, Jagarnathpur Station House Officer (SHO) Nitin Kumar Singh, and Pundag Outpost (OP) In-charge Sanjeev Kumar, participated in the raid operation.
