A man who broke into the house of Malayalam film director Joshiy at Panampilly Nagar in Kochi and stole jewellery worth over Rs 1 crore was arrested from Udippi in Karnataka.
Muhammad Irfan, a native of Bihar, was apprehended while returning after the robbery in Kochi. After Kerala police realised that the thief had escaped in a car registered in Maharashtra, they handed over the vehicle details to the Karnataka police. Based on this, the accused was arrested.
Gold and diamond jewellery stolen from the director's house were found in the car he was travelling in, according to sources. This car has been taken into custody. It is believed that the accused will be brought to Kochi soon.
A police team from Kochi has left for Udupi. Police believe that he arrived in Kochi from Mumbai alone in the car. They are also searching whether he got any help from local operatives about Joshiy's house.
Veteran director Joshiy's residence at Panampilly Nagar was burgled early morning on Saturday. Police said gold and diamond jewellery worth Rs 1 crore were stolen from the house. The incident reportedly took place at 1.30 am.
Joshiy resides with his son and director Abhilash, who was not present at the house when the incident took place. According to the police, the man entered the filmmaker's house through a window leading to the kitchen.
A set of diamond necklaces, 10 diamond rings, 12 diamond earrings, two gold rings, 10 gold necklaces, 10 gold bangles and 10 watches were stolen by breaking open the bedroom cupboard. From the CCTV footage, police found a man wearing a hat approaching the window and opening it. They could not find any other visual. The lack of footage after this was because the thief had turned the cameras to the other side, police said.
