Pune courier employee flees with Rs 28 lakh, gold; 4 arrested after 10,000-km hunt

Pune police have arrested four people and recovered gold and cash worth Rs 26.33 lakh after a 25-day operation across Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand in connection with a misappropriation case, the Press Trust of India reported, citing an official.The case was registered after a 20-year-old courier firm employee fled on October 30 with a bag containing gold and silver ornaments and Rs 28 lakh in cash.The consignment was meant to be delivered to an office in Mumbai.During the investigation, police found that the accused, Vishal Satyapal Chauhan, a resident of Misa Kalan in Uttar Pradesh's Etah district, had allegedly conspired with his brother Binesh Satyapalsingh Chauhan, friends Vikas Kumar Jadhon and Radheshyam alias Piku Chauhan, and brother-in-law Brijesh Surendrasinh Chauhan. The police team travelled more than 10,000 km during the operation and made three visits to Uttar Pradesh to trace the accused, the official told PTI.Using surveillance and information from informers, the team conducted searches in Etah, Kasganj and Gautam Buddha Nagar districts of Uttar Pradesh and in Dehradun, Uttarakhand. Four accused were apprehended with the help of local police.During questioning and subsequent searches, police recovered two gold biscuits weighing 120 gm and valued at Rs 16.8 lakh from Jadhon's residence.They also seized Rs 7 lakh in cash, a gold ring and a silver chain from Brijesh Chauhan's house, taking the total recovery to Rs 26.33 lakh, the official told PTI.The accused have been booked under Section 316(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for criminal breach of trust.The arrests and recovery followed the 25-day police operation in the two states.- Ends