The Girinagar police on Wednesday arrested a man for stealing tender coconuts kept on footpaths in and around the south division for the last three months.
The accused, Mohan, a native of Tamil Nadu, used to sell tender coconuts earlier and was addicted to online gambling. He incurred huge losses and started stealing coconuts from other vendors to repay the loan he borrowed to gamble, the police said.
According to the police, the accused would move around in a car during night time to identify convenient places where tender coconuts are stored on the roadside. He would load them in a car and sell it to other vendors to make money.
Using a similar modus operandi, the accused had stolen 150 tender coconuts belonging to Rajanna a few days ago. Based on a complaint, the Girinagar police gathered CCTV camera footage and zeroed in on the accused. The police recovered tender coconuts along with the car and a bike, totally worth ₹8 lakh from him.
