The Bajpe police on Tuesday arrested five men, including four loaders who were working for the Air India SATS Airport Services Ltd. at Mangaluru International Airport (MIA), on charges of stealing gold jewellery from a passenger’s check-in baggage.
A woman passenger, who travelled by Air India Express from Bengaluru to Mangaluru on August 30, lodged a complaint with the police that 56 gm jewellery worth ₹4.5 lakh, which was kept in her check-in baggage, was found missing after she checked her belongings on her arrival at MIA.
The Bajpe police had registered a case and launched a probe. On suspicion, the police questioned Nithin, a resident of Kandavara; Sadananda and Rajesh, residents of Mooduperara; and Praveen, a resident of Bajpe, who were all working for the Air India SATS as loaders.
The four persons reportedly admitted to stealing the valuables from the passenger’s baggage and selling them to Raviraj, a resident of Mooduperara. The police seized 50 gm gold bar worth ₹5 lakh from Raviraj and booked him for dishonestly receiving stolen goods under Section 317 (2) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
The police arrested all of them.
Police Commissioner Sudheer Kumar Reddy said the four loaders also admitted to stealing ₹2 lakh cash from the baggage of one Manohar Shetty at the airport in January.
The Bajpe police registered a case in this regard and were investigating it. They have recovered the stolen cash. During the preliminary probe, the police found that the accused used to search for valuables in the check-in baggage whenever it was not locked properly or the locks were easy to break open.
Mr. Reddy urged air passengers to ensure their baggage was properly locked.
Published – September 02, 2025 07:07 pm IST
