Bengaluru: 2 held for stealing cricket equipment belonging to Delhi Capitals

Two persons have been arrested for stealing the cricket equipment including bats, pads, gloves and helmets belonging to Delhi Capital (DC) players while transporting the cricket kits to Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) from ITC Gardenia on April 15.

The arrested are Cheluvaraj alias Nataraj, 30, a resident of Rajarajeshwari Layout near Challaghatta and a native of Mysuru and Sudanshu Nayak, 30, a resident of Sampangiramanagar and a native of Odisha. Cheluvaraj is a driver of a mini goods carrying vehicle while Sudanshu is a courier boy.

Srinivas R Gowda, deputy commissioner of police (Central) formed a team headed by the police sub-inspector Bheemsen Ghatage to nab the miscreants. Accordingly the duo were nabbed.

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According to police, Ananda Agarwala, 72, the manager of the Xpress Freight Solutions Private Limited from Mumbai City had filed a complaint with the police around 8.40 am on Friday and they arrested the duo within 24 hours after the incident was reported and recovered the stolen valuables from their residences.

Agarwala had stated that the theft happened on the night of April 15 when the cricket kit baggage was transported to the KIA. His firm had received the booking from DC logistics incharge Arvind Negi to transport the baggage of the team from ITC Gardenia hotel to KIA. The baggage were asked to courier the baggage to EFS facilities Delhi through Indigo flight.

Agarwala instructed his colleague manager Dinesh in Bengaluru to get the work done. Dinesh and his friend Sudhanshu went to the hotel and Chinnaswamy stadium around 10 pm along with two mini goods carrying vehicles. They loaded 39 bags in Cheluvaraju’s vehicle and another 25 bags in a vehicle driven by Abhishek.

A senior officer said that the theft came to light when the DC players took their kits to practise in Delhi on April 16. Negi sent a message to Agarwala stating that around 17 bats, three thigh pads, seven gloves, two helmets, three batting pads, three pair shoes and two sun glasses were missing.

Police refused to take complaint:

Speaking to DH, Agarwala said, Dinesh and other staff went to Cubbon Park police to lodge a complaint on April 17, but they were asked to file a complaint with Delhi police as the baggage had already reached Delhi. I had to come down to Bengaluru from Mumbai and approach the senior officials, but FIR was not registered. Finally I approached CH Pratap Reddy, commissioner of police and explained to him that the theft had taken place in Bengaluru. Reddy instructed the Cubbon Park police to register the FIR.

But, Cubbon Park police have a different story to tell. They claim that Agarwala and Negi initially approached Delhi police to file a complaint. They refused to register the complaint and hence Agarwala filed a complaint with us on April 21.

Duo claims they wanted to use the equipment for their own use:

Investigating into the case the police nabbed Sudanshu and Cheluvaraj. Sudanshu confessed to having stolen a bat from one of the kits. Cheluvarju confessed to have stolen 11 bats, 18 balls, four pair hand gloves, two helmets, three pair leg pads, two thigh pads, a centre guard and a bag. The total value of the recovered valuables is worth around Rs 16 lakh. Both of them claimed that they stole the valuables for their own use and didn’t have the intention to sell them.

Cheluvaraju stopped the vehicle for dinner near a hotel in Yelahanka. He took the bats and other equipment from different bags belonging to six players and put them in a bag. He hid the bag next to the compound wall of a building and went to KIA. After delivering the baggage in the courier he returned to the spot and took them to his house.

Sudanshu and Cheluvaraju didn’t know that both had stolen the equipment. They didn’t even know that there was a police complaint. So, they had kept the equipment in their residences.

Agarwala told DH that the police have recovered around 70 percent of the stolen property. A few more bats have been stolen and they are yet to be traced. But, police claim that Agarwal initially told them that only two bats were stolen, later he increased the number to 17 bats and also added other equipment. They could find only 11 bats with Cheluvaraju and a bat by Sudanshu. We have taken the duo into police custody and are investigating further.

The equipment stolen belonged to six players including DC skipper David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Phil Salt, Yash Dull and other two players, sources said.

When DH contacted Negi from the DC team he said, since the complaint is filed with the police, I am asked not to reveal anything about the theft.