Kochi: A thief breaks into a house. He scans the whole house but does not find anything worthwhile. As he is about to turn back, he realises that he had entered the home of a soldier. Stoked by nationalist fervour, he is filled with remorse.
He finds a bottle of liquor, downs one peg and leaves the rest. This may sound like a movie sequence but happened for real at a house at Thiruvankulam in Kerala's Ernakulam district. And the proof was the writing on the wall, that too in the thief's own handwriting.
"I flouted the seventh commandment (Thou shalt not steal) of the Bible. I did not know it was the house of a soldier. Realised it at the last minute when I spotted the Army cap. Officer, please forgive me. If I had known it was the house of a soldier, I would not have broken in," the thief had scribbled on the wall.
The robbery bid was made recently at the home of Isaac Mani at Thiruvankulam. A former solider, Mani lives abroad now.
Five shops in the area were also robbed on the same night. The thief had entered all the shops and the house by breaking open the lock.
Dr Nickson Homeo Clinic, Dream Collection, Bharat Tyres, Style Footwears, and Sign Designs (interior design) were robbed.
The cash bag from the Bharat Tyres and the owner's purse was found abandoned at the Isaac Mani's house.
The message on the wall also made a request for returning the bag. However, Rs 10,000 from the bag was missing.
Equipment and weapon used for the robbery were also recovered from the house.
The police have begun a probe into the incident. Fingerprint experts also conducted checks and collected details.
The police suspect that more than one person was involved in the robbery and the culprits were not from the nearby areas. The cops also believe that the note was scribbled to mislead the investigation. However, the cops are hopeful that the same note would lead them to the culprits.
