Two arrested for temple hundi theft in Anakapalle district

Visakhapatnam: The Anakapalle district police arrested two people in connection with the theft of valuables and offerings from two donation boxes (hundis) from the historic Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple at Upamaka under Nakkapalle mandal in the district. The police recovered over Rs 2.3 lakh in cash, 56 gms of gold ornaments and 2.6 kgs of silver ornaments, all worth over Rs 17.68 lakh.

The arrested have been identified as Kasireddy Srihari (22) and Gantyada Chinna (23), both of whom were welders by profession and natives of Nakkapalle mandal.

Anakapalle district police chief Tuhin Sinha said the two accused covered their faces with masks, entered the temple, and opened the hundi at Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple at Upamaka with the help of cutters, and similarly they opened another hundi at the nearby temple in the wee hours on June 3, and stole around Rs 1.2 lakh in valuables from the hundis.

Police formed three special teams to identify the accused in temple theft cases and, based on a concrete clue, nabbed a duo and recovered stolen property in some cases. Police asked temple authorities to install CCTV cameras and appoint security guards to prevent theft in temples. The police chief also asked police personnel to increase night patrolling at all major temples in the district.