Mangaluru: In a case of theft involving the donation box at the Sri Ramanjaneya Temple in Kenjaru village, Bajpe police arrested an interstate suspect on Tuesday.Mangaluru City police commissioner Sudheer Kumar Reddy said that on March 3, 2026, a case was registered regarding the theft of approximately Rs 25,000 from three donation boxes after breaking into the Sri Ramanjaneya Temple in Bajpe police station limits.Following this, a team was formed to track down the suspect. Based on confirmed information, Bajpe police arrested the accused, Shabik Ahmad Sheikh Abdul Khader, 25, a resident of Dindigul district, Tamil Nadu. During interrogation, he confessed to stealing the money from the temple’s donation box, and the stolen donation box was recovered.He is also a suspect in a theft case registered at the Brahmavar police station in Udupi. Additionally, he was involved in a motorcycle theft case in the Thokuru-Jokatte area under the Panambur police station jurisdiction in the last week of Feb.The accused had a tendency to travel from Tamil Nadu by train to commit thefts and then return to Tamil Nadu to evade capture. Bajpe police station ispector Balakrishna and crime staff members Noothan, Rajesh and Prakash arrested the accused and presented him before the court, which remanded him in judicial custody.
