Three accused in the jewellery theft case in Thamarassery, Kozhikode, were arrested. Kozhikode police confirmed that they are brothers, and all three are also charged in the Protection of Children against Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) cases of sexually assaulting minor girls.

Poonoor Palanthalakkal Nisar (25), accused of drilling the jeweller Rana Gold showroom wall in Thamarassery and stealing gold, was also arrested earlier in a POCSO case by the Thamarassery police.

Nisar was living on rent near Kozhikode Medical College Hospital. He met the minor girl in November 2022. According to the police, the child was constantly abused and harassed over the phone. On 18 April, Nisar held up and assaulted the minor girl at the Karadi bus stand in Thamarassery. The accused was arrested after conducting a detailed investigation into the complaint.

Nisar’s brother Nawas (27) is the first accused in the Thamarassery Rana Gold Jewellery robbery case. The police said that the accused committed the robbery to lead a flamboyant life and use drugs. In early February, the police took Nawas into custody after getting to know from the locals that he was leading an extravagant life.

In late January, thieves broke in through the wall of a jewellery shop and stole 50 sovereigns of gold. The theft occurred around midnight at Rana Gold Jewellery, 25 meters from Thamarassery police station and the DySP office on the national highway.

The gold earrings and other items kept inside the locker were stolen. Koduvalli Abdusalam, the owner of the jewellers, filed a complaint with the police saying that 400 grams of gold jewellery worth Rs 23 lakhs was lost.

Police received clues from CCTV footage showing three masked persons carrying out the robbery. One person stayed outside while the other two entered the jewellery store. As the shutter towards the stairs was lowered, the sound of wall drilling and breaking the locker was not heard from outside.

As soon as one of the burglars entered, they sprayed the CCTV camera with paint. Then, half of the locker door was cut with an electric cutter, and the gold ornaments were stolen inside. Incidentally, they left the gold stored in the upper two compartments.

After getting the information, a police team led by Kozhikode Rural SP Arvind Sukumar IPS and other police officers reached the spot.

Nawas and Nisar lived 200 meters away on the road behind the jewellery. They moved out within a week after the robbery, which led to suspicion. There is a case against Nawaf for stealing a mobile phone in 2020.

Police recovered 20 sovereigns worth of gold from Nisar’s house. They said the accused spent the remaining stolen money.

The first accused, Nawas, was arrested on the morning of 7 February from his rented house in Pallipuram, Thamarassery. On learning that his brother was caught, Nisar hid with a lady from Koduvalli. The Koduvalli police had registered a case for the woman’s disappearance.

Nawas was also arrested earlier in another POCSO case on the complaint of a Kunnamangalam native. Their elder brother Rashid was also accused of the POCSO case. A special team headed by Thamarassery DYSP MV Vinod investigated all these cases and arrested the accused.

This group broke open the wall of Kunnummal Jewelery in Engapuzha on 28 December and robbed it. As the locker could not be opened that day, they escaped by stealing 500 grams of silver and ten thousand rupees from the counter.

Nisar, Nawas, and Rashid’s father is also a convicted criminal. He has previously served jail time in theft cases.