Kozhikode: The police made a breakthrough in the burglary case at MT Vasudevan Nair's residence when investigators found that Shanta, the family's cook, had recently renovated her home and organized a lavish wedding for her daughter. Early in the investigation, officers had suspected that the thief had close ties to the household.

It didn’t take long for the team to zero in on Shanta as the prime suspect. During questioning, inconsistencies in her responses raised further suspicion. A search of her residence confirmed the recent renovations and extravagant wedding, strengthening the case against her.

When asked about her bank accounts and the source of the funds, she failed to provide a clear answer. Though Shanta mentioned that she bought the gold for her daughter's wedding from a jewellery shop on Mithai Street, she couldn’t pinpoint the exact shop. It was her daughter who eventually revealed the name of the jewellery store.

Upon visiting the store, the jeweller confirmed that Shanta and her relative Sukumaran had come to purchase the gold. The police later found that Sukumaran was actually Shanta's relative, Prakash. The investigation also revealed that Shanta frequently contacted Prakash on the phone, which further deepened the suspicion. When the police went to arrest Prakash at his house in Vattoli, Balussery, he attempted to flee.

Shanta (48) from Karuvissery, and her relative Kurinjippoyil Prakash (44), from Vattoli, were arrested on Sunday afternoon in connection with the theft of jewellery worth approximately Rs 15 lakh from M T Vasudevan Nair’s Nadakkavu residence.

Shanta had been stealing jewellery from the house in small amounts over the past four years. The bulk of the theft occurred after August 22. Prakash was arrested for helping Shanta sell the stolen jewellery at three different stores in the city. The police will on Monday file a report to take the accused into custody for further investigation and recovery of the stolen jewellery.