Ahmedabad: The city crime branch arrested a 19-year-old man for his alleged involvement in the theft of silver ornaments worth Rs 1.75 lakh by drilling a hole through the rear wall of a jewellery shop.The stolen items were recovered from the possession of the accused after a meticulous 10-day operation, police said. Ashwin Khadiya, allegedly committed the theft on the night of Jan 8, bypassing high-security shutters. The officials reconstructed the thief’s psychology, theorising that someone capable of such a labour-intensive breach likely possessed a background in construction or manual labour. “It was also believed that he would seek refuge in familiar labour colonies,” said a police officer.This reasoning allowed the team to narrow their focus specifically to the settlements near the Ramol canal and Jamfalwadi.Police inspector S J Jadeja said that police synchronised feeds from hundreds of CCTV cameras across the Hatkeshwar-Ramol corridor, looking for subtle movement patterns, specifically individuals carrying heavy, concealed loads in the dead of night. “We scanned CCTV cameras and could identify the physique of the accused but could not see his face. It was then clear that he entered Jamfalwadi,” he said.Jadeja said that by merging this technical surveillance with a network of human informants, the crime branch tracked the suspect’s “digital breadcrumbs” with precision. However, once it was clear that Khadiya was involved, he was found missing, and after nearly 10 days he came back. The cops anticipated his attempt to move the stolen property and set a strategic trap near the Shaktimata Temple in Jamfalwadi.The operation ended at the Jamfalwadi Char Rasta, where the crime branch caught Khadiya red-handed and recovered all the stolen jewellery worth Rs 1.75 lakh.
