Kolkata: Police officers from Gariahat PS have arrested a jewellery shop employee for allegedly stealing 130 grams of gold ornaments valued at Rs 20 lakh and replacing them with imitation pieces. The arrest on Sunday followed an extensive review of security camera footage, which completely exonerated a co-worker who was originally accused of the crime by the store owner.
Calculations revealed 130 grams of genuine gold ornaments were missing. Officers subsequently raided his residence and recovered 40 grams of the stolen gold jewellery. The incident came to light during a routine inventory audit, when the shop owner noticed discrepancies in stock weights and discovered that several items inside the vault were fake. Suspicion initially fell on the vault custodian who had recently stopped reporting to work and expressed intent to resign. The owner lodged a formal complaint against the custodian, suspecting him of swapping the jewellery during routine reconciliations. Following the discovery, police brought Pal in for questioning. Under sustained interrogation, Pal confessed to stealing the valuables out of financial greed. Cops are conducting further searches to trace and recover the remaining missing property.