Kannur: Beset with robberies, the villagers of Ramanthali, a remote panchayat near Payyanur in Kannur are having sleepless nights. It is not just that they stay awake at night to ward off thieves. Every evening, they huddle together and branch out in groups, roaming the village and checking on locked houses.

The village has reported 11 cases of robberies in the last two months. There is no clue about the thief. The cops search for answers. In the meantime, the villagers have formed a squad comprising local residents to counter the spate of thefts in their village. Though there is no such major loss of money or ornaments, the Payyanur police have been on a tireless mission to catch the culprits.

The first robbery of the series happened in April. The village has witnessed a series of thefts mostly in temples. Robberies have occurred at the Ramanthali Muchilotu Bhagawati temple, Thiruvambadi temple and Thavuriyatt temple and the money from the hundis of Muchilottu and Thavuriyatt temples was taken away.

"The Kunnatheru area of the fourth ward of Ramanthali has witnessed the most number of robbery cases. We had approached the police several times but they have not succeeded in catching the culprits. So we have formed squads to patrol the area along with the police. The squad has split into groups with 4-5 persons to cover different areas. We hope that the patrolling would create some kind of panic among the robbers,'' Bindhu Neelakandan, ward member said. The robbers have also targeted churches and houses in the area.

"The robbers are getting information about the locked homes in the region and they target it. We are not sure whether they are from nearby places or getting support from the locality to identify the houses. We patrol the area in two-wheelers and we walk to some areas to check the presence of any strangers.

The squads mostly inspect the vacant houses, temples, etc especially where the police jeep would not reach. We are hopeful that we can at least curb the robberies or catch the robber. Most of the squad members have to go to work the next day after patrolling the area throughout the night,'' Sajith Kattoor, a member of the squad said. The police have informed that they are on a mission to nab the robbers and have not found any clue leading to them.

"The robbers have not left any fingerprint or anything connected to them. We have questioned a lot of people and have not got any information leading to the culprits. The police team has been conducting a thorough investigation in various parts including Mangalore. However, we request the locals to inform the police if they go anywhere at night locking their homes. The robbers are getting information shortly after they found any home without inmates,'' said Jeevan George, Inspector of Police, Payyannur.