Bengaluru: A gang of seven pork-loving miscreants pulled off a bizarre heist in a midnight operation: They stole 88 pigs from two sheds near Doddaballapura on the outskirts of the city.
The robbery took place in the wee hours of Sunday at Bannimangala near Vishwanathapura and Byrasandra in Doddaballapura Rural area. Police said the gang struck with ease as the two sheds were located far away from human habitat due to hygiene factors.
Police suspect the same gang to be behind the pig thefts. “In both incidents, miscreants are seen using the same mini-truck. While they entered the shed in Bannimangala around 1.30am, they stole pigs from Byrasandra shed two hours later. This shows the miscreants, after dumping the pigs into the mini-goods truck, shifted them to another vehicle or locked them elsewhere before visiting the second one,” police said.
The first complaint was filed by agriculturist R Lokesh. “Miscreants stole 49 of 200 pigs, weighing between 50 and 60kg. I incurred a loss of nearly Rs 8.5 lakh,” Lokesh said. Police said miscreants damaged four CCTV cameras installed in different places of the shed before escaping.
The second complaint was filed by Diwakar, another farmer. He said a seven-member gang came in a mini-goods truck and made away with 39 pigs from his shed. According to Diwakar, each pig costs between Rs 15,000 and Rs 20,000.
“The theft was committed to make quick money by selling these animals in the market. We suspect a trader dealing with pork is behind this. Ugadi festival is fast approaching, and there will be a huge demand for pork to celebrate Hosthodaku (the day after Ugadi when people celebrate with a non-vegetarian feast),” a police officer said. Sale of pork by the roadside is a common sight in rural areas, especially in southern part of the state, during Hosthodaku.
INSET
When a sedan was used to steal sheep!
Not just pigs, even sheep become the target of thieves in the run-up to the festive season. Three weeks back, a five-member gang was arrested on charges of stealing 50 sheep from three villages in neighbouring Chikkaballapur district. The gang used a sedan to steal the sheep from Nalampalli, Marinayakanahalli and Agrahara near Chintamani and made Rs 2.5 lakh by selling them to a buyer in Andhra Pradesh.
