Hassan: Ravish Kumar, 24, aresident of Thyamagondlu in Nelamangala taluk in Bengaluru Rural district, Lokesh aliasLoki, 30, Kolal village in Koratagere taluk of Tumakuru district and Lokesh alias Govindaraju,29, from Peenya were arrested by the Kamakshipalya police, for the robbery of 700-year-old idols belonging to the Hoysala era from a temple in Hassan district.
The suspects had broken open the locks of the Chennakeshavaswamy temple at Nallur village in Alur taluk in Hassan district recently and had burgled the idols of Chennakeshavaswamy and Sridevi.
They were arrested from the Pipeline Road in Sunkadakatte on a tip off and the police recovered an antique idol of Goddess Sridevimade of Panchaloha from Lokesh’s house. The price of the idol is estimated tobe around Rs one crore, added the police.
Acase was registered with the Alur police. A few others are involved in the theft and they are at large. The trio claimed that those who were absconding were in possession of the Chennakeshavaswamy idol.
The police have intensified the search operation