Kottayam: A photographer's camera kit worth nearly ₹7 lakh was stolen during a train journey on Tuesday night, triggering frantic moments as he attempted to jump off the train in panic before fellow passengers restrained him. The bag was recovered within 30 minutes after Railway Police tracked it down with the help of an Apple AirPod left inside.

The bag belonged to Shone Dominic, a resident of Nalukody in Changanassery, who was travelling to Ernakulam on the Thiruvananthapuram–Mangaluru Malabar Express. He had boarded the train from Changanassery around 10.45 pm.

As the train halted at Kottayam, Shone noticed a woman carrying an apparently unwell child searching for a seat. He offered her his seat and amid the ensuing commotion, his bag containing the camera equipment disappeared.

Realising that his bag had been stolen, a distraught Shone attempted to jump off the train in a moment of panic. Alert fellow passengers intervened and prevented him from doing so.

Fortunately, Shone had left an Apple AirPod inside the bag. After tracing its last connected location to the Kottayam railway station platform, he alerted the Railway Police, giving them the vital lead that helped recover the stolen bag.

A team led by Railway Police CPO Rajesh Kumar launched a search in and around the station. Sensing that the police were closing in, the thief abandoned the bag and fled. The bag was recovered within 30 minutes and Rajesh Kumar informed Shone of the breakthrough.

got off the train at Piravom, hired an autorickshaw to Kottayam railway station and collected the recovered bag.
"This camera is the result of years of hard work. It has never let me down," said Shone, visibly relieved after receiving it.