Police dog helps recover Rs 1.07 cr stolen from Gujarat farmer's house

AHMEDABAD: A police dog helped crack a theft case involving Rs 1.07 crore and led to the arrest of two persons in Gujarat's Ahmedabad district, an official said on Friday.

With the help of Penny, a Dobermann, the district police on Thursday apprehended the accused and recovered the entire sum they allegedly stole on October 12, the official said.

As per an official release, the police have arrested Budha Solanki and his accomplice Vikram Solanki, both residents of Saragvala village in Dholka taluka.

A 52-year-old farmer became a millionaire overnight after selling a piece of land near the Lothal archaeological site close to his village, and it fetched him Rs 1.07 crore, sub-inspector P N Gohil of Koth police station said.

The farmer then went to Tarapur in Anand district on October 12 for some work after locking his house, he said.

"Since the farmer was planning to buy another piece of land using the proceeds, he stuffed the cash in two plastic bags and kept them inside his dilapidated kutcha house on October 10. On the night of October 12, some persons broke into the house by removing some bricks near the window and decamped with the bags," the official said.

Gohil said the local police found out about the theft the next day and started questioning 30 suspects and 14 history-sheeters to get some clues.

A dog squad also visited the spot with Penny to trace the route taken by the thieves, he said.

"On Thursday, Penny stopped at a spot some distance away from Budha's house. He was already on our list of suspects because he knew about the cash. When the accused was lined up with other suspects, Penny stopped near him for a while," he said.

Police raided Budha's house and recovered Rs 53.9 lakh, and during interrogation, he confessed to the theft and the involvement of Vikram.

The remaining sum was found at Vikram's house in the village.

Gohil said Budha was close to the farmer and was the last person he spoke to before leaving home on October 12.

In the past, when the farmer purchased a car after selling another piece of land, Budha drove it home because the farmer didn't know how to drive.

"Since Budha knew that the farmer would be out of station, he hatched a plan with Vikram and stole the money. They divided the loot equally and went home," Gohil said, adding that the duo was arrested for theft and trespass.