Salepur: Local police busted a looters’ gang and arrested four persons during a raid here in Cuttack district Sunday.
Police also seized many looted items including 16 mobile phones, a laptop, an LCD, a TV, a gas cylinder, two water pumps, a computer printer, 10 gold rings and equipment used to break locks.
The accused were identified as Suryakant Acharya alias Gutan (21), Nilendra Swain alias Nilua (30), Rajesh Swain alias Bula (25) of Machuati and Durgaprasad Rao alias Jaga (19) of Andhra Pradesh.
Salepur IIC Prasant Kumar Majhi said this at a press meet. The gang mostly operated in regions under Salepur, Mahanga, Nischintakoili and Nemal police limits, the police said. The gang targeted shops and houses, they added.
The miscreants July 22 broke into a Salepur-based museum and looted five swords, a gun of the British era, bullets, bows and arrows and two spears. A special team was formed to arrest the looters acting on the order of Cuttack (Rural) SP.
Acting on a tip-off, IIC Majhi arrested the four and seized the items looted from the museum from their possession. During interrogation, the accused confessed to have committed the loot.
A case was registered and the accused were produced in a court. Further investigation is on, police said. PNN
