Officials from Mines and Geology department complained to the police that 20 metric tonnes of sand in their possession was stolen by unidentified miscreants.
The department had seized the sand from illegal sand miners near Baje dam on the banks of River Swarna. When Lokayukta and Mines and Geology officials conducted a raid on May 16, they had seized 70 metric tonnes of sand and it was stored at Hiriyadka. The officials had booked cases against Dayananda Malya and Ashok Jogi for illegally mining sand.
They were asked not to transport the seized sand. When officials from Mines and Geology, tahsildar, revenue inspector and VA visited the spot for a joint inspection, they noticed that the 20 metric tonne sand was missing from the spot. A case was registered at Hiriyadka Police Station.