Wayanad: A youth who had embezzled 10 sovereigns of gold coins by fooling the staff of a jewellery shop at Sulthan Bathery here was nabbed by police within hours. Sultan Bathery Station House Officer (SHO) M A Santhosh and his team arrested the accused in a deft move.
Vadakkepurayil Rahil, 28, a native of Kozhikode's Thikkodi executed the crime posing as a rich man from a luxury hotel in Sulthan Bathery town. He had called a prominent jewellery shop in the town, saying that he is a relative of a prominent businessman and ordered the staff to bring the gold coins after billing them and collect the cash from him at the hotel.
An artful dodger, Rahil who was staying in an ordinary lodge nearby, managed to enter the luxury hotel and waited for the jewellery staff at the lobby. When the staff handed over the gold coins, Rahil told them that before handing over the money he had to show the coins to the madam waiting in the room. When the staff waited in the lobby, Rahil escaped from the hotel through a different gate.
After waiting for some time and inquiring at the reception about the ‘rich woman’ staying in the hotel, the staff soon realized their folly. However, they had alerted the jewellery shop who in turn intimated the police.
Scanning the CCTV visuals, police identified the culprit as a seasoned criminal who had been credited with many such crimes in the past. The photo of Rahil had circulated among drivers, bus depots, and police stations across the district. Soon police received a tip-off from a driver that Rahil had hired an Innova taxi car in which he had dashed towards Kozhikode.
Tracking his mobile number, police located him and also sourced the mobile number of the driver. As directed by the police, the driver tactfully stopped the car in a crowded spot at Kunnnamangalam on the way to Kozhikode. Later, he alerted the people with whose help he handed over the accused to the police. Judicial First Class Magistrate Court at Sulthan Bathery remanded Rahil to judicial custody for 14 days.
