The police have arrested Ashwin Khadiya, a 19-year-old, for allegedly stealing jewellery worth Rs 1.75 lakh from a shop by drilling a hole through the rear wall, officials said on Saturday.
The stolen jewellery was recovered from Khadiya’s possession. Authorities said the theft occurred on the night of January 8, when he bypassed high-security shutters and broke through a brick wall to access the valuables.
Investigators suspected that someone with construction or manual labor experience was behind the crime, given the labor-intensive method used. The police focused their investigation on labor colonies near Ramol Canal and Jamfalwadi area, while analyzing CCTV footage from hundreds of cameras across the Hatkeshwar-Ramol corridor.
The crime branch also tracked Khadiya’s digital activity, predicting that he would attempt to move the stolen jewellery. A trap was set near Shaktimata Temple in Jamfalwadi, where Khadiya was apprehended on Friday.
Police have praised the operation as a combination of CCTV monitoring, intelligence gathering, and digital forensics, which led to the swift arrest and recovery of the stolen items.
