Prajwal of Koppal had allegedly stolen Rs. 9 lakh from a pharmacy in Bengaluru; he had recently joined a hospital in Mysuru

Mysuru: A 25-year-old youth, who was on the run, after committing a series of thefts, has been apprehended by Vijayanagar Police in city.

The accused has been identified as Prajwal (whose real name is Vikas), a native of Hirearalihalli village in Yelburaga taluk of Koppal district. His modus operandi was to join hospitals, clinics and pharmacies either as a receptionist or a lab technician and decamp with cash, whenever there was a huge financial transaction. With a similar motive, Prajwal had recently joined Pralaksha Hospital at Hootagalli in Mysuru, as a receptionist.

Alert manager

 Yesterday, Hospital Manager Yogesh Kumar Reddy, was browsing social media, when he came across the CCTV footage of a theft, posted by a doctor. The youth in video resembled Prajwal, which prompted manager to suspect something fishy about him.

Reddy somehow managed to lock Prajwal in a room and informed the Vijayanagar Police, who reached the hospital and took him to custody.

Cops question

On questioning Prajwal, the Police came to know that he was staying in a Paying Guest (PG) accommodation at Hootagalli. He was taken to the PG, where a car and a motorbike belonging to him were seized.

Vijayanagar Police then informed Rajanukunte Police and handed him over, along with his two vehicles to them, it is said.

Case history

Before moving to Mysuru, Prajwal had worked in various hospitals, clinics and pharmacies in Bengaluru, Doddaballapur and other places.

While working at a pharmacy at Singanayakanahalli village in Yelahanka of Bengaluru, Prajwal had decamped with a cash bag containing Rs. 9 lakh and the car of pharmacy owner named G.H. Lokesh, a resident of M.S. Gollahalli village in Doddaballapur taluk. Lokesh had lodged a complaint at Rajanukunte Police Station.

In his complaint on July 19, Lokesh had stated that, Prajwal joined Novalife Pharmacy and Hospital  about 18 days ago. Since he also knew car driving, Lokesh was taking Prajwal along with him.

What happened…?

On July 19, Lokesh had taken a cash bag containing Rs, 9 lakh from his house to the pharmacy to make a payment. He had kept the bag in the pharmacy and went to the hospital in the same building, when Prajwal bolted with the cash bag at about 2 pm. He had fled with the car of Lokesh and didn’t return even after waiting for several hours. Lokesh, who grew suspicious, checked the cash table, only to find the cash bag missing.

He called Prajwal’s mobile phone only to find it in the pharmacy itself.

Car found, but…

At about 3 pm, Lokesh got a call over his phone from Yelahanka Traffic Police, who informed him that his car has been parked at Rajanukunte Circle, which was disrupting the movement of buses in the bus stand. With anxiety writ large on his face, Lokesh rushed to the spot to find his KIA car (KA-50-M-6984) intact, but could not find Prajwal anywhere.

He then lodged a complaint at Rajanukunte Police Station.

Rajanakunte Police had filed a First Information Report (FIR) against Prajwal, under BNS Section 306.