The Crime Branch of Assam Police have so far arrested six persons, including the four thieves who were caught on CCTV camera, for their involvement in the sensational theft at the Ugratara temple. A woman named Farhana, owner of a scrapyard, has also been formally arrested. The sixth arrested person has been identified as Tinku Ali, an employee of the scrapyard, who had taken the idol from the four thieves.
Another woman, who was detained by cops for questioning yesterday, has been released along with the three persons who were detained on Saturday.
However, police are yet to recover the idol that, sources say, “disappeared” from a pan shop where it was hidden by Tinku.
The four thieves — Rohit Basfor, Raju Basfor, Honey Singh and Babu — have confessed to their crime and claimed that Babu was the mastermind of the sensational incident. The arrested thieves further confessed that it was Raju who broke open the temple lock while Babu went inside the inner sanctum to steal the idol.
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The thieves then made their way out of the temple and went in the direction of Athgaon before turning back towards Lakhtokia locality where they hid the idol. After the incident came to light, the thieves handed the idol to Tinku Ali after bargaining a price for it. Tinku subsequently hid it in a roadside pan shop.
Police, however, have failed to recover the idol so far amid requests made by devotees to locate, recover and subsequently hand it over to temple authorities.
