Idukki: Police have arrested notorious thief Biju, popularly known as 'Kamakshi SI' and his son Bibin Biju in connection with the theft and illegal transportation of cardamom worth ₹1.25 lakh. The arrest was carried out by a police team led by the Kattappana Deputy Superintendent of Police.

The duo was taken into custody in a case related to the theft of green cardamom from Thovarayar in Kattappana and its subsequent illegal sale. Biju and his son are accused in several cases involving thefts from houses, shops and vehicles across different parts of Kerala.

Following their arrest, the two were taken to Nedumkandam for evidence collection and later produced before the Devikulam court, which remanded them to judicial custody. Police collected evidence from a spice trading centre at Padinjare Kavala in Nedumkandam. The vehicle used to transport and sell the stolen cardamom was also seized.

According to police, on December 29, 2025, the duo broke into a cardamom store attached to a house located opposite a church at Thovarayar and stole about 220 kg of green cardamom worth around ₹1.10 lakh. The stolen cardamom was transported the next day, after 9 am, to a spice trading centre in Nedumkandam, with the help of an acquaintance who is a minor, and sold there.

Police said Biju is a habitual offender with around 500 theft cases registered against him across various police stations in Kerala. He has spent nearly 15 years in prison. After serving a sentence at Peermade jail, he was detained under the KAAPA Act in February 2023 and shifted to Viyyur Central Jail.

His son Bibin is also an accused in several theft cases. He had been working as a taxi driver in Ernakulam and allegedly used a rented vehicle from there to transport the stolen cardamom to their house. The cardamom stolen from Thovarayar was later taken in another vehicle to Nedumkandam for sale.

The arrest was carried out by a team comprising Kattappana DySP V A Nishad Mon, CI T C Murugan, SIs P V Mahesh and Baby Biju, SCPO Jobin Jose, CPOs Abhilash, Vijin, Kamaraj, and Subin, along with the Thodupuzha squad.